Abstract
When a flower blossoms it brings immense joy in the heart of the person who watered and took care of it the same way when a child is born, it brings content in the house. When a child is about to be born the most curious question arising in everyone’s mind is whether it will be a boy or a girl that is sex determination of the baby. Let’s know some ways which people adopted in olden days to know it.
CHINESE CALENDAR FOR SEX DETERMINATION
Nowadays, technology has advanced so much that anything can be known easily the same way knowing the gender of the unborn child is very easy too. But when there were no such facilities, people used to estimate using the Chinese calendar which calculate or guesses the sex of the baby by considering a few dates such as the date of conception or the baby’s due date and then converting these numbers into mother’s lunar age. The age that is considered is the time when she got pregnant and the date when the baby was conceived.
ACCURACY OF CHINESE CALENDAR
Many say that it is accurate and 93% of the calculations have proven to be correct. But this can’t be relied on as this prediction doesn’t talk about the father and the sex of a child is always determined by a father’s sperm. So this calendar has a chance of being correct or may not. But since the technology was not so developed in the olden days this method was widely used and even today people try their luck by trying the Chinese Calendar.
ACCORDING TO AYURVEDA
In Ayurveda, many acharyas have given a lot of opinions about the determination of the sex of the unborn. One such is the opinion of acharya vagbhata, it says:
अत एव च शुकस्य बाहुल्याज्जायते पुमान्।
रक्तस्य स्त्री, तयोः साम्ये क्लीबः…..।
According to this, if the sperm is in excess, male child and if the ovum is in an excess, a female child is born. If the quantities of both the gametes are equal, the child will be of neutral gender. Another opinion by Acharya Charaka after conception, which tells about the sex is:
द्वितीयेश मासिक घनः संपध्यते पिण्डः पेश्यबुऺदं वा ।
तंत्र घनः पुरुषः, पेशी स्त्री, अबुऺदं नपुंसकम् ।
It says in the second month if the fetus is a solid mass then it’s a male or if it is like peshi shape then female or in arbuda shape, the fetus will be of neutral gender. But these methods don’t allow you to know the gender before the child is born.
SEX DETERMINATION AS PER UNANI
According to this science sex of an unborn child is determined based on the temperament of the zygote that is mizaj. The temperament depends on the gametes that are ovum and sperm, if the temperament is hot it will be male, or otherwise, it will be female.
TRADITIONAL WAYS OF DETERMINING SEX
In a European book called Distaff Gospels, they mention a way called the salt test in which they sprinkle salt over the head of the pregnant woman when she is asleep and when she wakes, the gender is determined based on which name she says that is whether it is man’s name or females name. If she says a man’s name then it will be a boy and if it is a girl she will say a woman’s name. Some say if the baby bump is in an upward direction then it is a male and if it is down then it will be a female. Some say if the woman is very pretty and glows during pregnancy then the chances of having a baby girl is high.
WHAT EXACTLY DETERMINES THE SEX OF A BABY
Every cell of the body has chromosomes the same way there are sex chromosomes in the gametes that determine the sex of the unborn child. Males have XY chromosomes and females have XX chromosomes as sex chromosomes. Hence there are two types of sperms, one type is sperm containing an X chromosome, and the other is when sperm contains a Y chromosome. The ovum always contains the X chromosome. When a sperm with a Y chromosome combines with the ovum, the resulting pattern will be XY and the zygote will develop into a male child. If the sperm with the X chromosome combines with the ovum, the resultant combination is XX, and the child will be female.This proves that the sex of a child is determined based on the chromosome present in the gamete of the father.
MODERN WAYS TO KNOW THE SEX OF THE UNBORN
Some ways by which the sex of the fetus is determined using modern technology are Preconception sperm, The Barr body, Chromosomal analysis, Physical (anatomical) examination, Genetic methods, and The Sry and the Zfy genes. In the method of preconception sperm, sperm of the desired chromosome can be selected, this usually prevents diseases related to the X chromosome which are passed on from the parents to the offspring. It is done through flow cytometry.
Barr bodies help in determining sex but are less accurate compared to other methods. Chromosomal analysis is done through a karyotype; in this method amniotic fluid is collected and tested to know the gender. It is highly accurate. Ultrasonography is also very accurate and helps to know gender. Physical examination determines the sex through a genitalia examination of the fetus but is less accurate. Genetic method, this method is highly accurate, in this method genes are analyzed and the gender is determined.
Knowing gender has always been a curiosity but these methods of determining sex are misused widely. In countries like India female foeticide is high as these modern methods help them to determine sex and if it is found that it’s a female, the child is aborted. This has disrupted the sex ratio as well. So let’s make use of these methods just to know the gender not to take away a life.
Dr. Vikram Chauhan (MD – Ayurveda) is the CEO and Founder of Planet Ayurveda Pvt. Ltd. He is Author of the Book “Ayurveda – God’s Manual For Healing”. He is an Ayurveda Expert Serving People worldwide through all the Possible Mediums, Operating from Main Branch in Mohali, India. With his Vast Experience in Herbs and their Applied Uses, he is successfully treating Numerous Patients suffering from Various Ailments. He is Serving the Society with Purest Herbal Supplements for One and only Purpose of Making People know and utilize the Wonderful Benefits of the Ayurvedic Diet, Lifestyle, and Natural Herbs. He Formulates Herbal Supplements himself and also Use Classical Ayurvedic Formulations for Helping People Get Rid of All Types of Health Issues, Restore their Health, Uses and Save themselves from the Worst Side-effects of Chemical Based Treatments. For More Details, visit www.PlanetAyurveda.com.
