Who is the carrier of the child's gender. The gender of the child depends on the character of the father (unscientific research). Scientific point of view on traditional methods of planning a boy or girl

Despite the popularity of the topic, real way to schedule gender of the unborn child still does not exist. But there are a number of myths and folk remedies... Let's talk about them.

  • Sex of the unborn child associated with the date of conception in relation to ovulation.

According to this myth, in the middle menstrual cycle(the time of the onset of ovulation) boys need to be done, and the rest of the time girls are better.

In order to refute this myth and understand the reason for its origin, you must first understand - what actually depends on gender of the unborn child?

Sex of the unborn child formed directly during conception, at the moment of fusion of the female and male germ cells. Responsibility for gender of the unborn child carry male gametes - spermatozoa, which are initially divided into two groups - X and Y.

Spermatozoa with a charge of Y at conception determine male embryo, and X lay the formation female... It is important to note that the spermatozoa of these groups differ not only in genetic factors that subsequently determine the sex of the embryo, but also in physical properties. Long-term studies in the field of embryogenetics have shown that these types of male germ cells differ in size, shape, speed of movement and resistance to adverse environmental factors.

Future boys- sperm Y - differ small size and are equipped with a longer "tail", allowing the development of a significant movement speed for this tiny cell. Thus, the spermatozoa of the Y group are very motile and active, which, under other favorable conditions, gives them significant advantages for the fertilization of the egg. However, along with the listed outstanding "sports" qualities characteristic of real men, spermatozoa with a Y charge also have disadvantages - they are not resistant to aggressive conditions environments (high and low acidity, temperature extremes).

Another disadvantage of "boy sperm" is low life expectancy; even if hit immediately after ejaculation to the maximum favorable environment, Y-spermatozoa live on average no more than a day.

In contrast, spermatozoa of group X, larger and, as a result, less mobile cells, adapt much better to external unfavorable conditions and retain the ability to fertilize sometimes up to one and a half weeks! V medical research even described cases of "conservation" of sperm X in the fornix of the vagina for the period of menstruation and subsequent conception at the beginning of the next ovulatory cycle.

One of the popular planning methods is based on these differences in sperm properties. gender of the unborn child- ovulatory. It is believed that in the middle of the menstrual cycle (on the 12-16th day) more likely to conceive a boy, and at the beginning and towards the end of the cycle there are more chances of conceiving a girl. This theory is explained quite simply: in the middle of the cycle, ovulation occurs - the release of a mature egg from the ovary. It is during this period, in principle, that the onset of conception is most likely. Since Y's sperm are more active and reach the egg cell faster, and the conditions for fertilization during this period are favorable, conception of a boy is more likely in the middle of the cycle. When planning conception at the beginning of the cycle (before the onset of ovulation), the spermatozoa Y are “weeded out”, since their lifespan is limited, and there are still no conditions for fertilization during this period. But sperm X, which are more stable in the vaginal environment and retain the ability to fertilize for a longer time, can safely "wait" for ovulation and, at conception, determine the female gender of the unborn child... In the second phase of the menstrual cycle (after the 16th day), the probability of conception decreases due to changes in chemical and physical properties vaginal secretions. The environment of the female genital tract becomes "more aggressive" in relation to sperm, and the unstable group Y has less chances of fertilization than the hardy and easily adaptable to unfavorable conditions X. In this regard, it is believed that closer to the end of the cycle, as well as before the onset of ovulation , more likely to conceive a girl.

In fairness, it should be noted that this planning method gender of the unborn child, so convincing at first glance, is actually far from being accurate. For such gender planning, the expectant mother should be the happy owner of a perfectly regular menstrual cycle, and future dad- an enviable fertile function (ability to fertilize). Even with a more or less regular cycle, the date of ovulation can significantly shift - due to climate change, changes atmospheric pressure and temperature, stress, hormonal fluctuations, physical overload, past diseases, etc. In addition, each healthy woman during the year, both the appearance of an anovulatory cycle is possible (ovulation does not occur at all for a month), and polio (maturation and release of several eggs from the ovary into different days one cycle).

A man's ability to fertilize also fluctuates depending on the state of his nervous system, hormonal background, physical activity, stress, smoking, alcohol consumption, chronic diseases(including hidden leaking) and even from the diet. All these factors affect both the total number of sperm and their activity, fertility and, among other things, the ratio of X and Y groups. It's not hard to guess that planning gender of the unborn child in conditions real life may be ineffective!

Now it is clear where the "calendar" planning methodology came from gender of the unborn child- after all, in this version there is an obvious analogy with the ovulatory method. However, it is hardly worth counting on a regular calendar - after all, not every woman ovulates, on which conception depends, occurs on the 14th of the calendar month! The same goes for binding to lunar calendar that in the middle of the month (the second decade of the calendar month or closer to the full moon according to the lunar calendar), boys are better "turned out", and the rest of the time - girls. If the female hormonal cycle was so dependent on the phase of the moon, it would be logical to assume that all women on the planet should ovulate and menstruate at the same time!

  • Once every three years in a woman's body, the "mindset" changes to gender of the unborn child.

This method assumes a choice gender of the second and subsequent children... First child in terms of planning gender of the unborn child is, as it were, a "trial", but then, according to the authors of the myth, everything should go like clockwork: know, wait for yourself three years - and give birth to a child of the opposite sex.

This version has no reasonable explanation: as you know, gender of the unborn child"Determines" a man, and not a woman at all - the egg always carries only the X chromosome. Well, and from a practical point of view, this "wait and see" method does not stand up to any criticism - it is enough to look around and count how many families have children of the same sex with an age difference of three to four years.

  • The child will inherit the gender of the parent whose blood is "younger".

This version is based on the opinion that human blood is "refreshed" at regular intervals, and this change can affect various physiological processes in the body, including the ability to conceive a child of a certain sex. According to this theory, a man's blood is renewed every four years, and a woman's blood every three years; to plan gender of the unborn child it is possible by calculating whose blood this year is "younger", that is, was recently updated. The method is quite difficult to implement, since when calculating the "schedule of rejuvenation" of blood, it is necessary to take into account blood loss (childbirth, abortion, miscarriage, surgery or injury accompanied by bleeding - it is believed that in this case an extraordinary "rejuvenation" of the blood occurs).

It must be said that the origin of the theory of "blood renewal" is not very clear - from a scientific point of view, such a fact cannot be confirmed. Blood is the only tissue in the body that exists in the liquid phase; like any other tissue, it consists of cells (erythrocytes, leukocytes, platelets, lymphocytes, etc.) and the basis, which is plasma (the liquid part of blood). Plasma renewal occurs constantly; as for blood cells, each type has its own "life span", therefore there is no single "renewal" period for all - a week, a month or four years - there is no such thing. There were also no differences in the life span of identical blood cells, depending on human gender: a man and a woman's blood cells live the same amount of time. Moreover, as we already know, gender of the unborn child depends only on the "charge" of the sperm involved in fertilization.

The sperm is not a blood cell, the chromosome set (X- or Y-chromosome, which determines the sex of the fetus) does not depend in any way on the composition of the blood or the "age" of its components. Therefore, the method of planning the sex of the child by the "age of blood" of the parents is a very effective pseudo-scientific "duck" - nothing more.

  • Sex of the unborn child depends ... on the orgasm.

This way of planning gender of the unborn child based on the presence or absence of an orgasm in the expectant mother at conception. According to this technique, women who dream of a daughter are advised to refrain from orgasm, and those who are planning an heir must certainly receive sexual satisfaction. This method of planning the sex of the baby is justified as follows: during sexual discharge, the vaginal environment becomes alkaline, which greatly facilitates the movement of sperm. And since the sperm that determine the male sex are more mobile, the chances of conceiving a boy are significantly increased.

There is certainly logic in this rationale; however, it is still not worth pinning great hopes on this method. The main factor on which the possibility of conception depends is the onset of ovulation (the release of a mature egg from the ovary); if this has not happened yet, the "acceleration" of Y-spermatozoa is meaningless: after all, they live no longer than a day and can literally not live up to conception - in contrast to spermatozoa with an X chromosome, whose lifespan is alkaline environment will only increase.

  • Sex of the unborn child determines the posture at conception.

In a literal sense: a man on top - there will be a son, a woman on top - a daughter. When meeting such original method planning gender of the unborn child a number of questions arise involuntarily. For example, what if other positions were used during conception (dog-style, spoons, etc.)? Or what a miracle did different-sex children appear in Puritan religious families, where the only permissible posture during execution is conjugal debt considered a missionary position? Questions on this topic can be asked endlessly, but the method is not as naive as it might seem at first glance. There is a more "scientific" version of this technique, according to which the sex of the child depends on the depth of penetration of the penis into the vagina during conception. There is already some logic here; the essence of the idea is, again, in the different speed of movement of the X- and Y-spermatozoa.

It is assumed that positions that provide deeper insertion further shorten the path for fast-moving Y-spermatozoa, which guarantees the birth of a boy. And vice versa - postures in which vestibular contact is possible (shallow penetration into the vagina) significantly lengthens the path for sperm and reduce the chances of “future boys” to reach an egg in a short period of their life.

It should be noted that such a justification completely refutes the original version of "a woman on top - there will be a girl" - after all, the pose of a rider cannot be called vestibular. Like the previous method associated with the presence of orgasm, the option with postures can only be considered in combination with the ovulatory method - outside of ovulation, all these tricks are meaningless.

  • Sex of the unborn child depends on whose sex cell is "stronger" at the time of conception.

The authors of this version believe that in some periods of life the ovum "predominates", and at other moments - the sperm. That is, literally “who is stronger” is like fighters in the ring or politicians in debates: today I won, and tomorrow my opponent will win. Accordingly, at planning boy the expectant mother is offered to perform various actions designed to "exhaust" the egg cell, for example, follow a protein-free diet or increase physical activity.

There is no logical rationale for this planning method. gender of the unborn child does not have; it is obvious that its creators do not know the anatomy and physiology of the human reproductive system, even at the school level. First, the egg is the largest, largest of the cells human body: its size at the time of ovulation is 0.1 mm! Sperm, on the other hand, is one of the smallest cells: its size is only 50-60 microns, and then taking into account the length of the "tail" (organ of movement; the main part of the sperm - the head containing genetic information - is 5-6 μm).

That is, if we understand the term "prevalence and strength" literally, in size, the egg is always hundreds of times "stronger" than the sperm, and no diet can change this ratio. Secondly, this is exactly the case when the statement “size does not matter” is true - after all, no matter who is stronger, the sex is always determined by the sperm. The sex of the unborn child depends on the chromosomal charge of the male reproductive cell participating in conception, and the "charge" of the egg is unchanged - it always carries the X chromosome. So there is no point in exhausting yourself with diets and excessive physical activity; to nothing, except for general exhaustion and a decrease in the likelihood of conception healthy child, such a miracle method will not work.

  • Can be "programmed" gender of the unborn child with the help of special diets .

The authors of this method advise to revise the menu of future parents a couple of months before the planned conception. If a couple dreams of a son, pickles, marinades, seafood and meat delicacies should prevail on the table. When "ordering" a daughter, according to this method, it is worth leaning on vegetables, pastries, sweets and fruits.

The history of this myth is beyond doubt: people draw an analogy between traditional taste preferences men and women and the opportunity in this way to influence gender of the unborn child... In fact, correction of the diet before conception is really appropriate - but only to increase the chances of conception and the health of the unborn child; seafood and fruits have no effect on gender formation.

  • Planning gender of the unborn child possibly using oriental tables.

On the Internet you can find many "ancient" tables, according to which it is proposed to accurately calculate gender of the unborn child... The most popular are the "Chinese" and "Japanese" versions.

V chinese calendar everything is quite simple: the age of the expectant mother is indicated vertically, and the month of conception is indicated horizontally; at the intersection indicated gender of the unborn child... The origin of this calendar is doubtful, as well as the effectiveness of the method: after all, according to this version, the sex of the child depends on the age of the mother and the season, while we know that gender is determined by only one factor - the charge of the sperm.

Using the "Japanese" method is more difficult: it involves the use of a special table and graph. In the table, the woman's month of birth is shown vertically, and the man's month of birth is shown horizontally. First, expectant parents are asked to find in the table the number at the intersection of their birth months. After that, you need to find the figure in the graph showing the right time for conception. For selection optimal month you need to find the figure in the upper horizontal line of the graph and then follow the change in the scale along the vertical axis corresponding to this figure. In this version, in contrast to the "Chinese" version, the male factor is still taken into account; however, this does not seriously affect the result - after all, we are talking about choosing the optimal month, and not the day of conception (that is, again, it is not tied to ovulation). These methods are more like fortune telling than a scientific way that can be used for planning. gender of the unborn child.

Finally, I would like to give advice to all future parents planning to increase the family. Don't get too hung up on the issue of choice. gender of the unborn child: precise methods planning simply does not exist today. Nature is not a table of orders; in addition, in the event of a mistake, the disappointment of the parents can greatly harm the child, affect his self-esteem, cause various complexes and doubts about the parents' love. The main thing is that the child is wanted - and it’s a boy or a girl, in fact, is not so important!

Often, parents who are planning a child or are waiting for a baby to be born say that gender is not at all important for them, they will be glad to both their daughter and their son, the main thing is to be healthy. But sometimes both dad and mom are looking forward to the appearance of a child of a certain gender. For example, if before that only girls were born in their family, they may dream of an heir. Or, on the contrary, several boys were born, but I really want to nurse my daughter.

What determines the sex of the child? Can you schedule it? To understand this issue, you need to remember biology.

On what or on whom the gender of the child may depend

There are 46 chromosomes in the nucleus of any human cell, and 22 pairs of them are autosomes, which can also be called asexual chromosomes. They are present in both the male and female body. In addition to these 22 pairs, there is one more pair, the 23rd in a row. They are called "gonosomes", and the sex of a person depends on them. If a person has two X chromosomes, that is, XX, then a girl is born. The combination of the X chromosome and the Y chromosome (XY) results in the birth of a boy.

Which parent determines the gender of the child? Many are sure that from his father. It turns out that this widespread opinion is not a myth, but the truth. The gender of any child always depends on the man. Why? It would be logical if both parents were responsible for the gender of the baby. But this is not the case. The fact is that all sex chromosomes are divided into 2 types: X and Y. A woman has only X chromosomes, which she shares with her unborn child. And in a man, a sperm cell can either carry an X chromosome, and then the parents give birth to a daughter (XX), or a Y chromosome, which, together with X, contributes to the appearance of a boy (XY). It is impossible to guarantee that this or that sperm will be involved during fertilization, therefore, you should not plan the sex of the child at conception: the chances of having a boy or a girl are about the same.

Myths that are untrustworthy

Some people are sure that the sex of the child depends on the lifestyle of the parents and much more, therefore, if you take care of this even before pregnancy, you can “program” the birth of a boy or girl. Consider the most known methods floor planning, the effectiveness of which has not yet been proven.

Chinese or Japanese tables

Chinese experts assure that this method quite accurate and guaranteed to be born long-awaited son or daughter. Similar tables were allegedly used back in Ancient China... When calculating, the age of the woman is taken into account, as well as the month of conception of the child.

Another similar method is 2 tables compiled in Japan. The couple must first find their marital number using their birth months. Then you need to study another table. She will tell you in what months a couple with a particular family number can give birth to a boy or a girl.

Blood renewal

There is a rather controversial theory according to which every woman's blood becomes "new" every three years, and for men - every 4 years. At the very beginning of the cycle, such blood is supposedly the strongest, while at the end of the cycle it is the weakest. If not so long ago the father's blood was renewed, a boy should be born, if the mother's - a girl.
Also taken into account are cases of severe blood loss, which occurs during surgery, childbirth, and so on. This theory has no scientific basis, since blood consists of many cells, and each of them changes through a certain period, everyone has their own. All blood cannot change after a certain number of years or months, this is a common myth.

Diet

Another popular theory is special meals... In order for the gender of the child to be the same as you want, until the moment of conception, you need to change your menu and adhere to it for at least 2 months. For the birth of a boy, you supposedly need to eat meat and meat products, seafood, and also do not give up pickled cucumbers, tomatoes and other pickles. And if a family dreams of a girl, then you need to eat all kinds of sweets, fruits, pamper yourself with pastries, vegetable dishes.

There is also a special French diet. It was suggested to be used by scientists from France, who noticed that if future parents eat food that is high in potassium or sodium before fertilization, then boys are born, and if there is a lot of calcium and magnesium in the diet, girls are born. You need to adhere to a special diet for at least 60 days, and then, with a probability of 80%, a child of the desired sex will be born. But it has not yet been proven that given diet really works.

Family leadership

According to this version, the gender of the baby depends on the person who is the leader in the family: the leader-father gives birth to boys, the leader-mother gives birth to girls. According to this theory, either only girls or only boys should be born in one family. But the fact of the appearance of heterosexual heirs is explained by the fact that in certain circumstances the role of the head of the family passes to another. For example, a woman ceases to be a leader if she is on maternity leave and depends on her husband. But still, this belief is nothing more than a myth.

Baby gender and ovulation

There is another method you can try to choose the gender of your baby at conception. However, it does not guarantee a 100% result either. Unfortunately or fortunately, it is not yet possible to schedule the gender of babies with a guarantee, but you can use this advice to increase the chances of having a baby of the correct gender.

Scientists have found that sperm with Y differ from those containing the X chromosome:

  • value (Y is smaller and lighter);
  • the length of the "tail" (for Y it is longer);
  • movement speed (Y move faster);
  • resistance to environmental conditions (weaker Y can die due to temperature changes, high or low acidity);
  • life span (for Y it is only about a day, while spermatozoa with X can retain the ability to fertilize up to 1.5 weeks).

How to use all this knowledge in practice? Very simple. If you want to conceive a boy, intimacy should be about 12-16 days of your menstrual cycle, when ovulation occurs. In this case, the sperm with the Y chromosome will be able to reach the egg cell faster, since they are lighter and more mobile. Accordingly, the likelihood of having a son will be the highest.

If intimacy occurred before ovulation, these sperm cells may not wait for it to start and die, while the stronger ones, with the X chromosome, will retain their viability for a long time. Accordingly, a girl will be born. After 16 days of the menstrual cycle in the vagina changes chemical environment, because of this, many sperm die, and first of all, with the Y chromosome. Until the onset of ovulation, only the strongest can remain.

Why doesn't this method work sometimes? And all because it is possible to calculate everything with an accuracy of the day only with a regular menstrual cycle in a woman. But the day of ovulation can be shifted due to many factors: illness, stress, physical exertion, and so on. A man's ability to conceive a child also depends on many factors, for example, his hormonal levels, nutrition, chronic diseases. Therefore, you cannot rely on this method: it may not work.

So, we found out what the sex of the unborn child depends on. While there are no scientific ways that could affect conception, about half of the babies born are boys, the rest are girls. And this is not so bad, since these processes should be controlled by nature, not man, otherwise the results of such planning would be unpredictable.

Do you always think about who will be born to you - a boy or a girl? And your curiosity is no less from the fact that you will find out about this only on your baby's birthday? What if you can find out now? For example, by date of conception or by what profession your partner has? You may or may not believe in funny omens, but it is simply necessary to know about the factors that can affect the sex of the unborn child.

I got a boy?

The likelihood of having a boy is greater if:

You and your partner live together

Data from a study that surveyed 86,000 couples suggests that you are slightly more likely if you and your partner live together.

51.5% of couples who lived together before conceiving a child had boys (compared with 49.9% of couples who did not live together before conceiving a child). However, how exactly living together affects the sex of the unborn child is not yet clear to scientists.

You've been together for less than a year

If your relationship is fresh, new, and interesting, you most likely have it (Brewis and Meyer 2005). During the period of frequent sexual intercourse with a partner, the Y-sperm, "responsible" for the conception of a boy, are more likely to fertilize an egg.

During a stormy personal relationship, Y- sperm are lighter, they have smaller size heads and shorter tail (Jongbloet 2004). Therefore, they move more actively, getting into an environment of thick fertile mucus that is not very favorable for them (a special mucus produced by the uterus during a period favorable for fertilization). This coincides with the first and last day of the so-called fertility window, including the time of ovulation (Jongbloet 2004).

If you and your partner have frequent sex, you are more likely to conceive on the first and last day of your fertility window, when the Y-sperm are more active and it is easier for them to fertilize an egg.

You are going through a stressful situation.

It has been noticed that during periods of prolonged tension and stress, for example, during and after the war, more boys are born (Helle et al 2009, Hohmann et al 2010).

According to one theory, when a woman is under constant stress, the production of the hormones testosterone and cortisol increases. (Grant 2007, Grant and Irwin 2009)... This, possibly, leads to changes in the structure of the egg itself, which facilitates the process of its fertilization with Y-spermatozoa.

How exactly this happens is not yet clear. However, scientists still know little about the very moment of fertilization of the egg.

Do you prefer high-calorie foods

In one study, British researchers divided 740 female subjects into two groups based on their caloric intake (Mathews et al 2008). 56% of women whose diet was more nutritious (about 2,413 calories) gave birth to boys. For those who ate less high-calorie foods, boys were born in 45% of cases.

Boys are more vulnerable and, according to statistics, a woman is less likely to conceive a boy or bear him successfully if the diet of the expectant mother is poor and not nutritious. X-spermatozoa (determine the conception of a girl) are more stable, therefore, in a difficult female body time (for example, during a period of nutritional deficiency) more of them survive.

However, regardless of your desire to have a boy or a girl, you need to understand that a full-fledged diet for the expectant mother is very important - both before conception and during pregnancy.

I have a girl?

You are slightly more likely to conceive a girl if:

You are over 35 years old, and your future dad is over 40

How more age future moms and dads, the more likely it is that the X-sperm will fertilize the egg (Matsuo et al 2009). Perhaps this is due to the influence of hormones that the body produces. mature woman... In addition, the older your partner is, the more likely the X-sperm is to win the race. The quality of sperm depends on the age of the man - the older he is, the less Y-sperm in it.

However, this can be explained by the fact that the older married couple the less often they have sex (Brewis 2005). It is also possible that more mature couples prefer to have sex at a time that coincides with the middle of a woman's fertile period, when X-spermatozoa have an advantage over Y-spermatozoa.

You have early toxicosis

If you are already on early dates If you are suffering from pregnancy (excessive vomiting of pregnant women), it is more likely that you will have a baby girl.

More than 13 scientific studies show that 55% of women affected by early toxicosis, girls were born span class = "citation"> (Veenendaal et al 2011). V control group women who have not suffered from severe toxicosis, girls were born in 49% of cases. Some experts believe this is due to high levels of the hormone estrogen, which is thought to cause excessive vomiting in pregnant women.

You were born in a tropical country or conceived your child there

Do you like a long vacation in a warm country?

There is no exact estimate of how long you and your partner need to be in a tropical climate to conceive a girl. Or that for the conception of a girl, it is only necessary that the mother of the unborn child herself be born in such an area. A global survey of children's dates of birth suggests that girls are more likely to be born in countries near the equator (Navara 2009).

According to one theory, the hormone melatonin plays a role here. Melatonin causes changes in reproductive system animals in response to a decrease or increase in the duration daylight hours... More girls are born when daylight hours are longer. Or perhaps it is elevated temperature in such countries affects how many and which sperm the sperm contains.

Your child was conceived in winter

However, data show that in some countries more girls were conceived in winter and more boys were conceived in summer. (Cagnacci et al 2003, Melnikov and Grech 2003)... Farmers have noted this pattern in domestic animals for many years.

This can be explained by the fact that viruses and bacteria are more active in winter. Since Y-sperm and "male" embryos are more vulnerable, and X-spermatozoa and "female" embryos are more likely to resist the infections that affect the body of the expectant mother.

Your partner has a hard or “harmful” job

Several studies have examined the relationship between a href = "#" bcmltype = "link" logicalid = "564484"> the profession of a future father and the birth rate of boys and girls. Scientists have come to the conclusion that men whose work is associated with constant stress and harmful factors, girls are more often born.

According to these studies, a woman whose husband:

  • professional driver (James 2008)
  • diver (James 2008)
  • sonar service technician (Volk 2004)
  • elevator worker (Milham and Ossiander 2008)
  • military pilot (James 2008)

You become pregnant after hormone-induced ovulation

According to scientific evidence, women who use hormones such as clomiphene to induce ovulation are more likely to have girls. (James 2008). However, not everyone agrees with this data.

You already have two or more children

It is believed that the more children you have already given birth, the more chances of the next one to conceive a girl. Perhaps this is due to the influence of the hormone gonadotropin, the level of which increases with each pregnancy. Some scholars associate high level the content of this hormone in the blood of the expectant mother with more likely conceive and give birth to a girl.

The birth of a child is a significant event in the life of a man and a woman. For couples who are expecting or planning a baby, the first place is the question - what gender their baby will belong to. Some want it to be a girl, others dream of a boy as the successor of the family. So what does the sex of the child depend on?

Sex cells

Back in the twentieth century, experts declassified what determines the sex of a person. You just have to remember the school curriculum in biology. The cell, its nucleus, contains DNA and is the carrier of genetic information. One cell has 23 paired chromosomes, of which 22 are the same. The last chromosome differs in belonging to certain gender- XX for women, XY for men.

Any cage, with the exception of genital cages, has a paired set. When a germ cell is formed, pairs of chromosomes are separated into single ones. In the egg, there are 23 identical chromosomes and each can only be X. In the sperm, the chromosome set also consists of 23 pairs, but they are different XY, which distinguishes the female organism from the male.

Geneticists adhere to unanimous opinion in the question of the formation of the sexual characteristics of the child. Studies and experiments have proven that only spermatozoa are able to influence this procedure. A woman's egg consists only of X chromosomes, but in sperm it can be either with an X or with a Y chromosome. It follows that the X chromosome passes from the mother, the X or Y from the father. As a result, if a pregnant woman has a combination of XX, a girl will be born, XY - a boy.

The role of ovulation

Ovulation is when a mature egg leaves the ovary, enters the fallopian tube and lives there, waiting for fertilization throughout the day. In the absence of conception, she dies in a day. When an egg meets a sperm, a zygote is formed ( new cage), which will already have a full set of chromosomes received from the parents. What determines the sex of the unborn child?

There are differences in the behavior of male germ cells X and Y:

  • Spermatozoa-Y more actively and faster reach the goal, but without meeting the egg, they quickly die. Their "vitality" in the vagina does not exceed 48 hours. Therefore, if you want a son, practice having sex on the day of your release. fetal egg or on the day preceding it.
  • For X-spermatozoa, low dynamism is characteristic, but more prolonged vitality. This determines their ability to wait for ovulation for about three days. The "girlish" sperm will slowly make its way to the egg and their meeting will mean the formation of a female sex in the baby.

Everything is in direct proportion to the speed, which of the spermatozoa can overtake the egg, the child of this sex will be, that is, the carrier of XX chromosomes is a girl, XY is a boy.

The posture during intercourse also matters. If you want to conceive a girl, it is recommended to shallow the penetration of the penis into the vagina and, conversely, "making" the boy, choose the "deep" position.

In order to apply ovulatory method, you need to calculate your menstruation schedule and designate the days of the release of the egg into the fallopian tube. The accuracy of counting is important here, otherwise you will not succeed. Difficulties will be in women with irregular cycle menses.

For those who have no problems with this, it is quite possible to determine the ovulatory day. For this, special pharmacological tests are suitable. Can also be measured over several months basal temperature and draw up the corresponding diagram. With a stable, no deviation cycle, lasting 28 days, ovulation occurs on the fourteenth day of menstruation.

If a woman is sensitive, she can recognize the onset of the release of an egg by painful sensations lower abdomen, general weakness and increased asthenia.

Other circumstances

It has been proven that the sex of the unborn child depends entirely on the man. In the course of the observations, some points were revealed:

  1. The age of the mother and father of the baby. The birth of girls prevails among couples where the man is younger. If the husband is older, the percentage of boys being born increases.
  2. Seasonality. If the fact of pregnancy occurred in the fall, it is most likely that a son will be born. Get pregnant in the spring - wait for your daughter to appear.
  3. Addiction is also seen on how much mom weighs. The graceful representatives of the fair sex often have girls.
  4. Temperament. Boys often appear in families where a woman has a strong and strong-willed character.
  5. Socio-economic side. According to statistics, the birth of sons prevails among parents with good incomes.

If you consider these signs, then you can easily predict the gender of your unborn child.

Let's try to plan

In the 21st century, it became possible to plan the sex of the unborn baby using various techniques... Of course, not all of them have a scientific background. Nevertheless, a huge number of couples make attempts to calculate who will be born to them.

These methods include:

  • Dietary. There is a theoretical assumption that the range of foods consumed by a person can influence the formation of a certain gender of a child at conception. For a boy, you need potassium, for a girl - calcium. When planning a pregnancy, include foods with a particular substance in your diet.
  • Blood renewal method. Even the ancients believed that the human body, and even his soul, is renewed once every few years, including blood. For men, this happens every four years, for women, three. The "youth" of blood is determined mathematically. The age of a man is divisible by 4, and of a woman by 3. Which parent has a remainder with big numbers, the child will have the same gender.
  • Parity of the month. The age of the expectant mother is taken as a basis - even or odd. It is possible to conceive a female baby in even months if the mother has an even age, and in odd months in combination with an odd age. Male gender is obtained at even age + odd months or odd age + even months.
  • The frequency of sexual intercourse. If you dream of a daughter, don't get carried away too often. intimate relationships... Abstaining from sex promotes the production of antibodies. They, in turn, reduce the activity of the Y chromosome and increase the likelihood of conceiving a girl. Families expecting a boy should make love more often.
  • You can also use the table compiled in China for planning. In it, the determining parameters are the time of fertilization and the age of the woman. The "+" sign standing at the intersection of these data indicates possible appearance boy. Therefore, the sign "-" - suggests the birth of a girl.
  • The blood type or Rh factor of the parents. There are tables by which you can determine the possible gender of the child. But if we take into account the fact that both boys and girls are born to the same parents, then this method raises great doubts.
  • Tables developed by Japanese scientists. The first step is to determine the code digit based on the months of birth of the parents. The second stage is to determine the sex of the child by the code number and the month of possible conception.

For today, there is only one technique that gives an almost one hundred percent guarantee. This is a system for separating sperm into "female and male species"By staining them, it is called MicroSort. This is a very complex method that requires a lot of money; it is recommended to carry out it artificially during conception.

It is worth noting that this method of calculating sex is not approved in many countries of the world, unless it is required by medical indications... The main purpose this study is carrying out sorting of "unhealthy" embryos. It is suitable for parents who have hereditary diseases or they are their bearers.

All of these techniques do not guarantee 100 percent results. In any case, the sex of the child depends on sperm X or Y. Using several techniques at the same time, you will probably be able to achieve the birth of a child of the desired gender.

Only a family with children can be truly happy. While waiting for the appearance of the baby, do not dwell on his sexual characteristics. It doesn't matter who is born, a boy or a girl. The main thing is that it is a healthy toddler, giving you only joy.

All of a woman's eggs contain an X chromosome. Of one hundred million male sperm (this is one sperm portion), half contains the X chromosome, half the Y chromosome.


If an X-sperm will merge with an egg, you will get a girl (XX), and if a Y-sperm, you will get a boy (XY).

Based on this simple biology, half of the sites "for moms" conclude that the sex of the unborn child depends on male chromosomes, and the second half - that from the mother's food. Make up, girls! The sex of the unborn child depends on the male chromosomes, and on the mother's nutrition, and on the father's nutrition, and on female chromosomes, and from the characteristics of sexual intercourse ... simple solutions it is better not to read further.

X-sperm versus Y-sperm

The X-sperm contain the X-chromosome, and the Y-sperm contain the Y-chromosome, of course. If, for example, there is some harmful mutation in the X chromosome (inherited from the ancestors), then this can easily lead to the nonviability of X spermatozoa. Such a man will have only solid boys.


It usually does not reach such extremes, but the difference is still felt: in X-spermatozoa this man there are some specific traits (encoded on the X chromosome), in Y spermatozoa - other traits (encoded on the Y chromosome). Because of this, X- and Y-sperm have different properties- react differently to the many vicissitudes of life that await them in the depths of the female body. If, because of this difference, the X-spermatozoa gain an advantage, then such a couple will more often have girls, and if the Y-spermatozoa, then boys.

Escape from the vagina

In the vagina, the environment for spermatozoa is unfavorable (acidic), here most of them die. Consequently, their combat task is to leave the vagina as quickly as possible, to get into a safe uterus. In the vagina, therefore, two things are required from the sperm: first, speed, Secondly, acid resistant... Both of these qualities may well be different in X- and Y-spermatozoa.

The importance of these qualities can be diminished if:

  • the semen of a man (it is part of the sperm, neutralizes acid, is secreted by three glands at once, including the famous prostate) will High Quality(it depends on the genes of the man, the diet of the man, on the period of abstinence);
  • the contents of a woman's vagina will not be very sour (it depends on the woman's genes, on the woman's diet, on what kind of sexual intercourse it is in the evening - the first or, say, the fourth);
  • during orgasm, throw the sperm deep, into the very end of the vagina, to the entrance to the uterus, directly to the alkaline.

Sperm in the tubes

In the uterus, the environment is alkaline, so the factor of "acid resistance" does not work there. The speed factor is also questionable - it will only be important if, by the time of intercourse, the woman's egg has already entered the genital tract (ovulation has occurred). To the finish line, of course, the first to come are sperm, swimming faster than others.

But if intercourse occurred earlier than ovulation, then high-speed sperm cells will not find anyone at the finish line. Bummer! The egg will have to. Spermatozoa can live in the fallopian tubes for up to 3-5 days - for these centenarians, not speed, but completely different qualities will be important.

1) Sperm capacity(a cell that, in fact, for the sake of speed is deprived of half of the organelles) long time survive in the fallopian tubes of a woman (this quality can also be influenced by the difference between genes in the X and Y chromosomes: if any gene on the X chromosome makes spermatozoa long-livers, then in the case of "pipe waiting" such a man will most likely be born girl). Long-term survival can be diminished in importance if:

  • in the fallopian tubes of a woman, a very, very favorable nutrient medium (depends on the woman's genes, on the woman's diet);
  • there is very little time left before the release of the egg (it depends on the stage of the woman's menstrual cycle at which sexual intercourse took place).

2) The vagina, and even more so the uterus and the fallopian tubes- this is the inside of the female body, the female is working there with might and main the immune system... Everyone has probably heard that in extreme cases of incompatibility, a woman is allergic to semen (itching, swelling, redness)? - You don't think that if all this is not there, then the immunity does not work? It works, of course: the immune system quietly but methodically destroys sperm, which it especially does not like. Let's imagine that the reason for this "dislike" is encoded in the X chromosome - then after a day or two of waiting, the number of X spermatozoa will greatly decrease, and the likelihood of conceiving a boy will increase. The importance of the factor sperm immune compatibility can be reduced if

  • there is very little time left before the release of the egg (the immune system will not long affect the sperm)
  • a woman's immune system is suppressed due to stress, for example.

What to do

I strongly doubt that even one "for-mom" has read this article to the end - and I completely agree with her. What is this text? Only sheer ambiguities, “specific signs”, “any differences” ... Damn it, what exactly is the difference between X- and Y-spermatozoa ?! After all, this is certainly known!

Well, on popular sites (both in Russian and in English), it is generally accepted that X-spermatozoa swim slower, but they are more stable. But, dear citizens, if this were really the case (and the difference would be significant), then obtaining "sperm of the same sex" would be a fairly simple matter.

  • You could just let the sperm stand for a couple of days, the "weak" Y-sperm would die, the "stable" X-sperm remained - and you're done, you can go to make girls.
  • We could have a swimming competition among the sperm (technically easy to do), and we would isolate the "high velocity" Y-sperm and go after the boys.

However, in modern medical practice, completely different, much more complex and expensive ways"Planning the sex of the child."

  • Flow cytometry (laser sperm separation) has been used for quite a long time (since the 90s) in agriculture... The use of this method in planning the sex of human children is still limited, because, firstly, it gives only 80% of the guarantee, and secondly - the devil only knows how exactly the laser beam and electric fields affect the genetic material of the sperm.
  • IVF with pre-implantation diagnostics.(Before transplanting an embryo obtained "in a test tube" into a woman, several cells are detached from it and their detailed analysis is carried out - including, you can find out the gender.) The use of this method is also limited, because not every doctor is without serious reasons will go to ripping off cells from human embryo; besides, this whole procedure costs quite a lot of money.