Old wives tales about pregnancy abound, and almost every pregnant woman is inundated by them. Even though you may not know the sex of your baby, you are sure to hear lots of people telling you whether you will have a boy or a girl based on the shape of your stomach, on the way you are carrying your baby, or on the position you had sex in when your baby was conceived.

How true are these old wives tales anyway? According to research conducted by Yale University, they are completely baseless and the tales are nothing more than fanciful rumours.

Baby's Sex: If your stomach sticks out, it means nothing more than the fact that you have a small upper body, so your baby is pushing out since he has no where else to go. If you are carrying the baby wide, it is because your baby has positioned himself horizontally. If you are carrying the baby high, it is because your stomach muscles are not very strong; it does not that you are having a boy.

Child Size: A big belly does not mean a big, tall child. The tallest of people may have been born to women whose bellies increased almost imperceptibly during pregnancy.

Why then place so much belief in old wives tales? Essentially such sex-determination tales have a fifty percent chance of being right. So if you are pregnant and someone tells you that you are going to have a girl because you are carrying her low, and if you really do give birth to a girl, you will remember with amazement and wonder that your aunt had predicted your baby's sex accurately and your own faith in the tail is bound to increase. But on the other hand if you give birth to a boy, you will forget who said what and no one would broach the topic again.

Increased Odds: Of all the old wives tales out there, this possibly takes the cake: "To get pregnant, stand on your head after intercourse. Gravity will ensure that the egg gets fertilized." Well, you can stand on your head all you want. It is good for you, but it will not help you get pregnant. Simply placing a pillow under the pelvic region and lying down in this position for a few minutes after sex should give you the extra push that is needed.

Mother's Pregnancy: Although women get many characteristics and physical attributes from their mother, their pregnancy normally does not depend on how their mother's pregnancies were, unless of course it relates to a genetic disease. No, just because your mother had stretch marks does not mean you will have them too. If you look after your skin, moisturize it well, you just may be lucky and not develop any stretch marks at all! On the other hand if your mother had no stretch marks don't think you will automatically escape them. Yes, if you take the benefit of your mother's knowledge, like her, you too could get lucky!