Mother’s Diet Influences Sex of Baby
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James Joyner | Wednesday, April 23, 2008 |
A new study finds that a mother’s diet during pregnancy influences the sex of the baby, giving new meaning to the old adage, “you are what you eat.”
Oysters may excite the libido, but there is nothing like a hearty breakfast laced with sugar to boost a woman’s chances of conceiving a son, according to a study released Wednesday.
Likewise, a low-energy diet that skimps on calories, minerals and nutrients is more likely to yield a female of the human species, says the study, published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, Britain’s de facto academy of sciences.
Ironically, that pretty much corresponds to how the sexes eat later in life.
About the Author: James Joyner is the publisher of Outside the Beltway and the managing editor of the Atlantic Council. He's a former Army officer, Desert Storm vet, and college professor with a PhD in political science from The University of Alabama. He lives just outside the Beltway in Alexandria, Virginia with his wife and infant daughter.
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Wait a minute, what about that whole business with the X and Y chromosomes from the man?
DURING Pregnancy?
Don't you mean BEFORE?
Yeah, I thought the male contribution determined the sex. Isn't the science settled on this? Wasn't there consensus? I need to know. I don't want to be labeled a denier.
It is not uncommon in animals for maternal health and nutrition effect the sex of offspring. Generally speaking more well fed mothers produce more boys.
According to the article eating cereal for breakfast was a larger factor than total caloric intake. Women who ate cereal for breakfast regularly prior to conception were more likely to have boys. No mechanism was proposed in any of the free articles I found referencing this.
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