Sex Selection

Even though you may not like to say it out loud, you may secretly have a preference when it comes to the gender of an anticipated baby. You may have just started to consider having a child, but in the back of your mind, you may be wondering if there's any way to choose the baby's gender.

When it comes to gender selection, there are options. The most reliable options involve medical treatments and tend to be both costly and invasive. Home options exit as well, but their reliability is questionable.

Before you begin your quest, you need to first consider what your reaction will be if the baby turns out to be of the opposite gender. If you won't care and will still love the child, then these methods are fine for you.

But if you really don't want a child unless it is a boy/girl, then you should consider adoption. If you truly only want to raise a child of a specific gender, adoption guarantees you what you want. You will be happy, and the child will have a loving home.

If, however, you'd like to try for a specific gender but will be equally pleased with the opposite gender, here are a few approaches you can try.

Your gynecologist can help you discover the latest options. For instance, in vitro fertilization is an effective method of gender selection. You should know up-front that many clinics will not perform in vitro if your only reason for doing so is to select a specific gender. Do your research, though, because some clinics will do in vitro for gender selection if you are seeking to balance your family. For instance, if you currently have three boys and really want a girl, some clinics may be willing to help you.

Another option is sperm separation. Some clinics offer this as a way to increase your chances of having a boy or a girl. They attempt to separate the X-carrying sperm from the Y-carrying sperm. The specifics of how they separate the two vary from clinic to clinic.

If you're really not interested in involving modern medicine in your quest, you can try some at-home methods. The reliability of these methods varies, but here are the latest theories.

For starters, many fertility experts suggest you conceive on specific days. The theory is that if you want a girl, you should have sex 3 to 2 1/2 days before you ovulate. If, however, you want a boy, you should have sex less than a day before you ovulate. To use this method, you would need to chart your cycle for a couple of months in advance or use an ovulation kit so you would know specifically when you were due to ovulate.

Another theory some people use is that your diet affects whether you have a boy or a girl. If you're interested in a boy, you should eat foods rich in potassium and sodium. For a girl, you'll want to eat foods high in calcium and magnesium.

Will these methods work? The success rates vary greatly. When it's all said and done, when it comes to the gender of your baby, only time, specifically nine months, will tell for sure.