Old Wives Tales

As a nurse, I've really become quite fond of old wives tales. I get exposed to them quite frequently. I love to hear people giving me advice that has no sound basis or scientific rationale whatsoever. Below is just a smidgen of some of the old tales I've heard.

Example #1: Don't go outside with wet hair. You'll get a cold.
Note to self: Cold air doesn't make you sick....oh, and...neither does wet hair! Germs make you sick, and there happen to be more of them floating around in the winter time! (i.e. flu season!)

Example #2: Don't give your baby milk if they have a fever. The milk will curdle in their stomachs.
Note to self: Pretty sure that's what milk will do when it hits the acid in your stomach anyway...it has nothing to do with the fever. Also, it's good to keep your children hydrated when they're running fevers. The worst thing you can do is quit giving them fluids!

Example #3: If you burn yourself, put mustard on the burn. It will take the sting out.
Note to self: Okay, um...I've never actually tried this and I still have yet to actually find out how mustard magically fixes the burning sensation, but I can tell you this....DON'T EVER DO THIS! It will end up causing you more pain in the future as we nurses have to scrape out the mustard to get a good look at the wound. Most of the time, air exposure is the main culprit. So, if you have a significant burn, cover it with a dry, clean cloth and get medical attention if needed. Keeping the air off won't completely kill the pain, but it will help significantly.

So, what brings this to mind you might ask? Well, um...I'm pregnant. And since this is a first for me, I never knew until now about all the crazy old wives' tales out there related to pregnancy! HOLY SMOKES! I've been exposed to the wrath of the mother of all wives' tales. I casually nod my head and as politely and as sincerely as possible, say, "Oh really. You think so. That's interesting. I'll keep that in mind." My favorites have to do with guessing the sex of the baby based on the mother's body and how it looks. For instance, did you know that when you are having a girl, you gain your weight all over, you crave sweets, your hair looks really stringy and gross because the baby is robbing your beauty, and you can still manage to "GLOW" and look beautiful with a girl? However, when it's a boy, you only gain weight in your stomach, the fetal heart rate is slower, you look ugly, and the hair on your legs grows faster. Interesting eh? So when anybody comes up to me and says, "Oh, you're definitely having a girl", I immediately think to myself, "Okay, and what exactly are you basing that on? Is it that my hair looks nappy, my butt is really big, or I've never looked more beautiful in all my life?" And, when they think it's a boy, I must either carry my weight really well, have bushy legs, or give Quasimodo a run for his money on his looks! Oh...the humor never ends! I love it!

Secondly, there are all sorts of tests out there to determine the sex of your baby before the ultrasound. Well, I decided that I'd put them to the test last week. Here are the results:

Needle-Ring Test/Swinging vs. Circulating: Test Results say it's a girl because the ring went in a circle motion
Chinese Lunar Calender: Test results say that based on my lunar age and month of conception that we are having a girl
Wives' Tale Quiz: Test results are 60% chance girl and 40% chance boy (Oh thanks, that's really helpful....why not just say 50-50 and not take any risks, eh?)
Draino-Urine Test: Actually didn't participate in this one. Didn't feel it was worth it to spend $5 on an item I didn't need just so I could prove how stupid these tests are.

So, yesterday, I went to my OB-GYN with all of these results in the back of my head. I wanted to put good ole, evidence-based medicine to the test and get an ultrasound. I'm 21 weeks now, so it's around that time when you can tell the sex of the baby. And guess what good old medicine had to say? We're having a BOY!! We are so excited and can hardly wait for some good wrestling matches in the future. Of course, we would be happy with a girl too, but we'll just have to wait a while for that one. The biggest comfort of all is that baby is growing healthy and strong, and what else could anyone else ask for?