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RESEARCH

Throughout history a fast amount of research has been undertaken to understand the complexity of gender selection. This is what you need to know.

Click here for more details and references. 

As you might know, the sperm of the man determines the sex of the child. The sperm contains 22 chromosomes as well as either an X- or a Y-chromosome. A woman's egg contains 22 chromosomes plus an X-chromosome. If the sperm that fertilises the egg carries an X-chromosome the baby will be XX and will become a girl. If the sperm carries a Y-chromosome the baby will be XY, a boy.

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X + X = GIRL

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But what factors influence which sperm will be able to fertilise the egg? 

What factors would increase the chances of having a boy, which to have a girl? 

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​A popular theory by Landrum Shettles in the 1960s assumed that male (Y) sperm are faster but more fragile than female (X) sperm. He thus promoted the idea that timing would have an impact on gender selection: To have a girl it was recommended to have intercourse a few days before ovulation. However, the theory is controversial with a lack of evidence. Other 'timing methods' (e.g. O+12) and empirical studies clearly question and contradict Shettles findings (e.g. Wilcox et al 1995, Gray et al 1998). 

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So I researched further and found a far more convincing theory. It is about the influence of the mother's diet prior to conception. Observations that lead into this direction were already made in the 1930s when a German scientist called Herbst observed that the amount of male offsprings of Bonellia viridis in water increased significantly when he added potassium to aquarium water. Further research on animals and later humans confirmed the link between minerals and offspring gender.

In 1983 the French scientist François Papa published, after many years of research and consulting women who had the wish to conceive a certain gender, a book with the promising title "Boy or Girl. Choosing Your Child through your diet", suggesting that a diet high in sodium and potassium favours a boy while a diet high in calcium and magnesium favours a girl, claiming an above 80% success rate.

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These findings were further investigated in the last decades, confirming success rates in the

70s% - 80s% (e.g. Noorlander et al 2010 - 81%). This means your odds of conceiving a girl are approx. 80:20 rather than approx. 50:50.

In 2016 a comprehensive study by scientists around Mahmoud Edessy with a 76% success rate for the wished gender came to the following conclusion: 

"This study concluded that the diet method (relative excess of sodium and potassium ions) would favour the birth of males, while relative excess of Ca and Mg ions in the diet would favour the birth of females.

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So by altering diet to include and exclude certain food,

the condition in the reproductive tract will be directly affected;

increasing the number of a particular sex."

Edessy et al 2016

CONCEPT

The concept behind the girl diet.

The concept is simple. You certainly cannot guarantee a certain gender of your child (at least not naturally), however, through your diet, you can increase the probability of the gender outcome.

This is called gender-swaying. 

By changing the intake of key minerals through the pre-conceptional diet, the concentration of these minerals in the blood changes, which then increases the odds for conceiving a specific gender. 

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Specifically, the pre-conceptional diet of the mother to sway for a girl should be 

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HIGH in MAGNESIUM and CALCIUM

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LOW in SODIUM and POTASSIUM

It is less about the quantities of these minerals, but rather the relationship between them that counts. This should commence at least six weeks, better a couple of months, before trying to conceive. 

There is no evidence that suggests that the father needs to change his diet too. 

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While there is some understanding of this phenomenon with animals, the mechanisms by which diet influences sex selection in humans remains unclear. We know that changes in the diet changes the concentration of these minerals in the blood. It is assumed that this induces ionic and/or hormonal changes that influence the cervical mucus or the oocyte, which then influences which sperm can fertilise the egg. 

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"The balance between sodium and potassium versus calcium and magnesium could change the receptors of the oocyte wall to favor the attraction of either a male or female sperm. When

there is a high sodium and potassium intake, and a low calcium and magnesium in the female’s

diet, the oocyte wall will change to attract the (y-sperm). While, more calcium and magnesium

in the blood and a low sodium and potassium will attract the (x-sperm)."

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No matter how exactly the mechanism works, science leaves no doubt that diet may influence gender. So if you dream of pink and know by following this diet you can increase the probability of conceiving a girl, why wouldn't you? Simply follow the food guide as part of a balanced, nutrious diet and, with discipline, you too may be able to sway pink.

FOOD GUIDE

Find what food to eat and what to avoid for the girl diet

TABLES

Detailed tables with minerals for foods & drinks

RECIPES

Find a collection of recipes 

OTHER FACTORS

What else you can do / other factors that influence  gender