The Best Tips for How to Conceive a Baby Girl Naturally

While all moms ultimately desire a healthy baby and pregnancy, we’d be lying if we didn’t admit that many of them are also searching for that secret for how to conceive a baby girl naturally.

This is a great topic for ‘The Moms At Odds’ because the issue itself is controversial. Is it even possible to increase your chances to conceive a girl?

We’re going to talk about it all today- from the foods to eat to conceive and girl, to the best timing of intercourse, and even the more “out there” ideas like the best month to conceive a girl. Some of the ideas may involve a lot of time and planning, but others are simple adjustments you can make to put the odds slightly in your favor.

But since we’re mainly science and fact driven, let’s start there…

Disclaimer: This page contains affiliate links.  See our disclosure policy for more details.

Is There a Proven, Scientific Way That Tells Us How to Conceive a Baby Girl Naturally?

Short answer: NO, there is no proven 100% guaranteed method that will tell you how to conceive a girl.

Long answer: There are multiple suggestions and recommendations that are based on scientific fact.

Let’s do a quick review of sex-ed. The sex of a baby is determined by the male, namely by his sperm.

A fertilized embryo gets two chromosomes, one from the female egg and one from the male sperm. Woman have two X chromosomes (X,X), so mom will always provide an X for baby in her egg. Men have a X and a Y and can pass along either one. Each sperm has either the X -or- Y chromosome.

So if you want to have a baby girl, you want to increase the chances that one of those X sperm make it to your egg first.

The X chromosome is larger than the Y chromosome (by that extra leg the X has) and that makes the X sperm (or “girl” sperm) heavier and slower swimmers. However, X sperm are also said to be more resilient. This would suggest that you have lower chances of conceiving a girl on ovulation day, as the male sperm swim faster and would be more likely to reach the egg first.

This is an important point to understand, as almost all theories that explain how to conceive a baby girl naturally are based on this concept of X sperm being slow and resilient.

This goes hand in hand with understanding the timing of your ovulation. While you can technically track your ovulation with nothing more than your fingers and a journal (namely by evaluating your cervical mucus on a daily basis), technology has ways to make this soooo much easier.

For all families trying to conceive (no matter the desired gender), we highly recommend investing in the Clearblue Advanced Digital Ovulation Predictor Kit and/or the Clearblue Fertility Monitor. Digital tests tell you with clear displays whether you are ovulation and whether or not you have a good or great chance of conceiving.

Skip the regular ovulation testing strips (like these). They are notoriously difficult to read and cause more stress than they help.

Another good idea is to track your cycle (and even things like cervical mucus and/or basal body temperature) with an app on your phone. There are even apps specific for ovulation calculation for a girl! While this doesn’t have the physical information like the aforementioned digital tests, it can give you a rough idea of when you are ovulating.

READ  How, Why, and When to Announce Pregnancy

The Shettles Method

When talking gender prediction, the Shettles method is definitely the most well-known and popular.

How to Choose the Sex of Your Baby first came out almost 40 years ago and has become the standard reference for couples learning how to conceive a baby girl or boy. In the newest edition, Dr. Shettles and David Rorvik discuss the method and scientific evidence that gives the Shettles method accuracy of 75%.

The beauty of the Shettles method is that it’s thorough and easy to understand. The book goes into a lot of detail explaining anatomy, reproduction, and ovulation tracking. They use science to give recommendations about everything from diet, to timing intercourse, and even sex positions.

The biggest point, however, of the Shettles method is timing.

Remember that since girl sperm swim slower and are more resilient, Dr. Shettles suggest that couples who want to conceive a girl should have sex two to four days before ovulation. Then when ovulation occurs, only girl sperm should be left to fertilize the egg.

I highly recommend reading How to Choose the Sex of Your Baby for details about ovulation prediction. That being said, as I mentioned earlier many women find it easier to purchase ovulation prediction kits to take the guesswork out of it.

The biggest “con” to the Shettles method is that while it increases your probability of conceiving a girl, it does decrease your overall chance of getting pregnant as Dr. Shettles recommends skipping sex on the woman’s most fertile days.

READ  Midwife vs. OB GYN: Which is the Best Option for You?

Foods to Eat to Conceive a Girl

There’s a lot of advice floating around about which foods to eat to conceive a girl.

But there is also a fair amount of conflicting information online too.

One theory behind eating certain foods is that it will create a more acidic vaginal environment which would favor X carrying sperm.

There is some scientific research to back up the claim that certain foods can impact gender.

This study found an association between women who ate a diet higher in potassium and nutrients (and oddly enough, breakfast cereal) were more likely to conceive boys than the woman who ate fewer calories and skipped breakfast.

Another study showed an 80% success rate when combing a low sodium, high calcium and magnesium diet with timing intercourse before conception.

Wondering what a diet high in calcium and magnesium, but low in sodium and potassium might look like? Try eating lots of yogurt, cheese, butter, nuts, leafy greens and beans and avoiding salt, bananas, and potatoes.

It’s a good idea to chat with your doctor before making as drastic changes to your diet.

Decrease Sperm Count

Lowering your partner’s sperm count could favor conceiving a baby girl.

There’s some science to back this up. A study showed that as sperm count decreased, so did the proportion of Y carrying sperm.

If you want to try this route to get a baby girl some ways you can lower sperm count are through frequent ejaculation or heat.

In another study, X carrying sperm (“girl” sperm)  were able to survive better under warmer temperatures than the Y carrying sperm which could also make applying heat a better option.

Easy ways to apply heat are to have your partner wear briefs and or use their laptop on their lap. For some fun ways to heat things up that you could enjoy together, try soaking in a warm bath or hot tub.

However, remember that decreasing sperm count can also decrease your chances of conceiving at all.

READ Are Birthing Classes Necessary for All Moms?

Sex Positions to Conceive a Girl

While the suggestion of your sex position determining baby’s gender may seem crazy, there’s actual science to support the idea.

Remember what we said earlier about the difference between X and Y sperm: the X sperm (or “girl” sperm) swim slower and are more resilient. This would imply that if sperm are placed inside of the vagina near the opening (ie. further from the cervix), the swimmers have longer to travel before they reach the egg, and the girl sperm are more likely to make the journey and fertilize.

So when evaluating sex positions for how to conceive a baby girl naturally, think of ones that involve shallow penetration. In Dr. Shettles’ book How to Choose the Sex of Your Baby he recommends missionary, spooning, or straddling (“girl on top”) where the woman controls and limits the penetration.

Skip the Fun Part

While we’re on the topic of sex, let’s just get into the thick of it. Dr. Shettles also explains that female orgasm creates an alkaline environment in your vagina. If you read the “foods to eat to conceive a girl” earlier, you know this can make those Y sperm live and last longer (thus decreasing your chances of conceiving a baby girl).

Of course sex isn’t just about reproduction, the aspect of bonding with your partner is also a very important consideration. We would never recommend that you sacrifice your enjoyment and/or your relationship for the sake of conceiving a girl naturally. That being said, it’s a theory and you can decide what to do with the information.

READ  Picking Baby Names When You and Your Partner Don’t Agree

The Chinese Gender Chart

The Chinese Gender Prediction Chart uses a woman’s lunar age and month of conception to predict a baby’s gender and is most often referenced as a “fun” way to guess during pregnancy.

It can also be used to select your preferred gender. Based on your age, you can determine the best month to conceive a girl this year.

But that does depend on whether the chart is accurate. The fact of the matter is that we couldn’t find any accurate research, but anecdotal claims range from 50% to 93% accuracy.

In the chart’s defense, there is a lot of confusion about lunar age. I had seen these charts posted all over and had no clue that I was reading it all wrong because I didn’t realize this distinction.

Now that we understand how to read the chart better, it’s 75% accurate predicting the gender of our combined four pregnancies.

Want to give it a try? This website makes it really easy to read the charts by showing age using a Western calendar.