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There are two things every pregnant woman can be fairly
sure of - you'll get bigger, and people will tell you lies. And the
bigger you get, the bigger the lies they tell. Here are our favorite top
ten myths. . .
 Big
bumps mean big babies. Er, no. If you're tall and have good stomach tone, you may barely look
pregnant, even though the baby may be big. If you're little, your bump
may look huge, but your baby is more likely to take after you and be
small. And if the head has engaged, your bump may look smaller.
You will put on two
stone
"Not necessarily - and it's not a problem if you don't," says
Ong Guay. "We don't pay weight gain a great deal of attention now.
Many pregnant women aren't weighed at all. Putting on loads of weight doesn't
mean you're having a big baby, either. A lot of that extra weight will
be water and fat."
Everyone
gets stretch marks
Actually, only 50 per cent of women do. It's thought the tendency to get
them is inherited, so if your mum didn't, then you probably won't.
You'll
´bloom´ in the middle months of your pregnancy
Don't bank on it. Spots, greasy hair and exhaustion can plague some of
us
right through our pregnancies. So if you do feel marvelous, then think
yourself extremely lucky!
You're
expecting a boy if your tummy gets hairy
Well, at least it's not a werewolf. You'll be relieved to know that it's
all down to the increase in male hormones during pregnancy. Rest assured
that plenty of women who sprout lustrously hairy tummies go on to have
girls.
If you're
carrying high or wide, it's a
girl; low or out in front, it's
a boy.
The only thing carrying high means is that it's your first pregnancy or you're
incredibly fit. The muscles supporting your uterus get slacker with each
pregnancy, so your bump may be lower each time. If your bump is out in
front, you probably have a short torso, so the baby has nowhere to go
but out. Wide bumps usually mean the baby is in a sideways position.
A fast heartbeat
means it's
a girl; a slow one and it's a
boy
Studies published this year in America have shown that girl babies do
have faster heartbeats than boys - but only during labor. In pregnancy,
heart rate is no clue whatsoever to the baby's sex.
Each
labor
gets easier
There's some truth in this one. Says Ong: "Second and subsequent labors
are more likely to be shorter, with less chance of complications.
Although, if you had a difficult pregnancy with a second or third child,
or need to be induced, it's more likely the labor will be more
difficult."
If your baby's
born at night, he'll be awake
at night
If only life were that simple - or predictable. "I put this one
right up
there with astrology," says Ong. "It's a fun idea, but it's
got no basis in reality. The time of day your baby was born has no
relation to his sleeping and waking times."
You can't
have a home birth with a first baby
You can, but you have to be determined, says Oxfordshire midwife Ong
Guay. "I'd have no objections to agreeing to a home birth for a
first baby, as long as the woman's pregnancy is uncomplicated," she
says. "It's most important that a woman who wants a home birth
talks it over with her midwife - particularly if her GP is opposed to
it, as some are."
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