Evening Primrose oil (EPO) is often recommended for women who are trying to conceive a boy. The evening primrose is a flowering plant that grows mainly in the United States. It can also be found growing in Europe and other countries. The yellow flower blooms in the evening, hence the name.

Evening primrose oil contains gamma-linolenic acid (GLA), an Omega-6 essential fatty acid. GLA is converted by the body into prostoglandin E1, which is a hormone-like substance that reduces inflammation. It also thins cervical mucus and helps the body produce more high-quality “egg-white” mucus. This mucus is more favorable to male sperm because it is easier for them to swim to the egg.

The oil is extracted from Evening Primrose seeds and put into capsules for easy consumption. Dosage for sex selection is usually 1500 to 3000mg per day. Most women suffer no side effects when they take the oil, but some experience mild stomach upset or a headache. However, reports show that it can cause uterine contractions or prevent implantation, so it is often recommended that it be taken only from menstruation through ovulation each cycle.

The effectiveness of evening primrose oil in gender selection has not been studied. Studies have shown that it helps with breast pain during the menstrual cycle, eczema and rheumatoid arthritis. However, there have not been any large, well-designed studies performed for any of these conditions. As with any supplement, you should make your doctor aware that you are using it so that medication interactions can be avoided.

There are only two scientifically reliable methods of choosing the gender of your child, PGD and sperm sorting. However, those methods do not involve the natural conception of a child. If you are trying to conceive a girl the old-fashioned way, these methods may be able to help you out. There are varying reports of their reliability.

1. Attempt conception from the end of your period until 3 days before your ovulate. This is based on the theory that male sperm only live 12-24 hours and female sperm live can live up to 3-4 days. (Shettles Method)

2. Use the missionary position. (Shettles Method)

3. Attempt conception in the 12 hours after ovulation. (O+12 Method, Whalen Method)

4. Take calcium and magnesium supplements for several months prior to conception.

5. Conceive in the afternoon or during a full moon.

6. Try to conceive your baby on an even numbered day.

7. Eat chocolate.

8. Use the Chinese conception chart to help you plan the conception date.

9. Put a pink ribbon under your pillow and a wooden spoon under your bed.

10. Take cranberry capsules for the week before you ovulate. This lowers the pH level in the reproductive tract, which harms male sperm.

Remember that no matter what anyone else tells you, unless you are planning to use PGD or MicroSort, there is no reliable way to insure that you will be able to select the gender of your child.

The Chinese Gender Calendar is believed to be over 700 years old. It was found in a Royal Tomb near Peking, China. The chart uses the mother’s lunar age and the lunar month of conception to help predict the gender of an unborn baby. It can also be used when you are trying to conceive a baby of a particular gender. There are anecdotal reports that the Chinese Gender Chart is 90% accurate.

There are many examples of the Chinese Gender Calendar online. However, in order to use the chart, you must know you lunar age at conception. If you were born January 1st up to and including February 20th, then your lunar age is the same as your regular calendar age. If you were born after February 20th, then you add one year to your regular calendar age. You must also remember that the chart is based on the conception month of the child, not the birth month.

There is no foolproof method to naturally conceiving a boy. However, these tips can show you how to increase the chances of conceiving a baby boy.

1. Attempting conception no more than 24 hours prior to or 12 hours after ovulation is believed to be the best time to conceive a boy. (Shettles Method)

2. Attempt conception 4 to 6 days prior to ovulation. (Whelan method)

3. Use the Chinese Birth Chart to determine what month you should try to conceive a baby boy. Remember to use your lunar month and the lunar month of conception.

4. Take Evening Primrose supplements to increase the quality of cervical mucus. This is thought to increase the chances that you will conceive a son.

5. Take Guaifenesin pills for several days prior to ovulation. This will thin cervical mucus and make it easier conceive a boy. The methods described above are based on some scientific reasoning.

The following are urban myths and folklore, but it would not hurt to try them.

6. The man should drink coffee prior to intercourse because it makes Y-sperm more active.

7. Try to conceive only on odd days of the month.

8. Eat a “male” diet consisting of red meat, salty foods and plenty of soft drinks. Consumption of beer or other alcoholic beverages is not recommended during the time you are trying to conceive a baby or during pregnancy.

An ultrasound is the most reliable non-invasive way to predict the gender of your unborn baby. An amniocentesis is almost foolproof, but is invasive and poses a risk to you and your baby. However, there are a great number of unscientific methods of predicting the sex of your baby that do not require a doctor at all.

One of the most common is the Drano pee test. A pregnant woman mixes her urine with crystal Drano (not the liquid version). The color of the mixture indicates the gender of the baby. Brown means that a girl is on the way and blue means that you have conceived a baby boy. Another easy predictor is uses just your wedding ring. Tie a string to the ring and dangle it over your baby. If it swings back and forth like a clock pendulum, you are having a baby boy. If it goes in a circular motion, pull out your pink paint.

There is one method of unscientific gender prediction that requires a little assistance from your caregiver. The next time someone listens to your baby’s heart rate, ask for the results. Anything above 140 beats per minute is thought to be a girl. Trying to predict the gender of your baby is one of the most enjoyable parts of your pregnancy. Dads-to-be and everyone else will quickly join in on the fun.

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) is not a government agency. It is actually a voluntary membership non-profit organization. The goal of the organization is to promote patient care, research and knowledge in all areas of reproductive medicine. These areas include infertility, contraception (birth control), sexuality and menopause. Rules related to gender selection procedures performed by health professionals are generated by this organization.

The ASRM was founded in 1994 by a small group of fertility experts in Chicago. It is now head quartered in Birmingham Alabama. Members come from all 50 states and several foreign countries. They include not only OB-GYN’s and reproductive endocrinologists, but pediatricians, nurses, lab technicians, veterinarians and more. Since its inception, the Society has led the way in the field of reproductive medicine. Members have developed the technologically advanced treatments used today, including IVF and donor insemination. Policies are written by an elected Board of Directors.The Society provides education to physicians and other medical providers. Doctors can earn CME’s (continuing medical education credits) by attending programs run by the ASRM.

In addition to programs for physician education, the ASRM also provides patient education and advocacy. The members have helped develop reproductive rights legislation .It publishes the peer-reviewed medical journal, Fertility and Sterility, for healthcare providers, as well as two newsletters, ASRM News and Menopausal Medicine.
ASRM is very dedicated to patient education. It provides a series of booklets and fact sheets written to help patients understand the complicated processes involved with reproductive medicine, including information about diagnosis and treatment options.

If you are interested in gender selection through artificial means, then the ethics policies provided by the ASRM should be reviewed. The ethics committee at the ASRM writes the ethical guidelines that physicians follow when treating people for reproductive issues. While not mandatory, almost all highly qualified and respected physicians abide by the guidelines. Gender selection for non-medical reasons is not prohibited by these guidelines.

Cranberries help prevent UTI’s because the chemicals contained in the berry (and the juice) cause the urinary tract to be acidic. They also cause the reproductive tract to be acidic. Female sperm thrive in an acidic environment, while male sperm become almost immobilized.

You can drink a lot of cranberry juice while trying to conceive a girl, or you can take cranberry capsules. There are available at many healthfood store, some drugstores and online. You should take them from the time your period starts until one day after ovulation.

The American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) is the group that sets ethical standards for fertility clinics. Most clinics follow the recommendations of this agency. In 1999, the position of the ASRM was that choosing an embryo solely on the basis of the gender of the baby should be discouraged. However, in 2001, this position was reversed.

Dr. Norbert Gleicher, who chaired a group of several reproductive medicine centers in and around Chicago, had written to the ASRM asking for a clarification on their gender selection recommendations. After consulting with the

committee members, Mr. John Robertson, the chairman of ASRM ethics committee wrote a letter in response to Dr. Gleicher’s inquiry. His response shocked the reproductive medicine community. The letter indicated that choosing an embryo based on gender was acceptable when being offered to offer “gender variety” to couple who already had a child and wished to have a child of the opposite gender.

Some doctors and couples were excited to have this opportunity to choose the gender of unborn children. However, not every doctor was pleased. Some thought that this was the beginning of a trip down a very slippery slope. As technology became more proficient, would parents start rejecting embryos based on intelligence or looks? Would it lead to a generation of designed babies?

At the time the ASRM found the use of preimplantation genetic screening (also called PGD) ethically acceptable, the sperm sorting method for gender selection had already been given the ethical green light. For some, the acceptance of PGD meant a more reliable method was available to couples who wanted to choose the gender of their child. For others, there was a huge difference between two methods because in sperm sorting, only sperm cells are rejected, while in PGD, embryos remain unused.

As the science of reproductive medicine has grown, more people have access to gender selection than ever before. Although more widely accepted now, ethical considerations must still be made by every couple considering both natural and medicinally invasive gender selection techniques.