A DIET OF BEANS AND HARD CHEESE IF YOU WANT A BABY GIRL

Source: http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/lifestyle/sex-relationships/a-diet-of-beans-and-hard-cheese-if-you-want-a-baby-girl/story-e6frf01i-1225914505940

Images taken from: http://www.infoniac.com/health-fitness/eat-cheese-and-beans-to-have-a-baby-girl-study-says.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1309160/Want-girl-You-need-quit-salt-bananas-bed-often.html

Beans and hard cheese = baby girl?

According to scientists from Maastricht University in Holland, cutting out foods rich in salt and going on a strict diet of beans and hard cheese, can increase a mother's chances of giving birth to a baby girl.

Mothers should avoid foods high in sodium and potassium such as olives, bacon, smoked salmon, potatoes, meats, blue cheese, bread and pastries. Foods high in calcium and magnesium are recommended including yogurt, hard cheese, rhubarb, tofu, spinach, oranges, broccoli, figs, beans and different kinds of wheat cereals.

The study involved 172 Caucasian women from Western Europe, aged between 23-42. Results found 80 per cent of the women who maintained the recommended diet, all ended up giving birth to baby girls. Timing of conception was also crucial a factor in determining the sex of the baby.

However, the article failed to mention how many women adhered to the diet right to the end of the study, and how many of those women actually gave birth to a girl. The Daily Mail did a better job at reporting this fact. They stated that 21 of the 172 women stuck it out to the end, and of the 21, 16 gave birth to a daughter. Because The Daily Telegraph has omitted this fact, many of their readers would erronously assume that 80 per cent of the 172 women (roughly 138 women) actually gave birth to a girl, when in fact 16 did.  

Overall, this was an interesting, engaging and informative article. The heading is direct and attention-grabbing, and the length of the article is fairly short, making it an ideal piece for online readers. The Daily Telegraph has also integrated a “Have your say” comments box, enabling readers to share their thoughts on the article, and allowing mothers to share their experiences and to interact with one another. Do they agree or disagree with this study? Do they have any specific tips and diets that worked for them in producing the desired sex of their baby? 

Diet and timing can determine the sex of a baby

However, what’s lacking is some visuals to go with the article, which would have made the piece more interesting and appealing overall for the reader. There is only one quote from a spokesperson on behalf of the scientists who conducted this study and there is no name or title of the spokesperson. As a reader, I would have liked to see a few direct quotes from the researchers themselves and the participants involved in the study. Quotes from the mothers who partook in this study (or mother’s independent of the study) - sharing their success stories would have been useful.

Another weakness of this article is that it failed to provide information on the ‘why’ behind the study. What is the scientific reason for why avoiding foods high in sodium and potassium and opting for foods rich in calcium and magnesium, can increase a mother’s chance of producing a baby girl? Thus, the article has not covered all of the 5 W’s and 1 H.

The article mentioned the duration of the study (5 years), but there is no mention of how long mothers should be on this diet before they try to conceive. This would be helpful to all the mothers out there who may be reading this article and wanting to know when they should commence and how long they should adhere to this diet prior to conceiving.

Finally, a brief definition and description of scientific terms such as sodium, magnesium and potassium could have also been included, so readers who may be unfamiliar with these terms, can have a better understanding of the article.