Gender Selection Using The Shettles Method

Determining If Natural Techniques To Choose The Sex Of The Baby Work

Oct 12, 2009

Trying to conceive either a boy or a girl is becoming more popular. This article will look at basics of The Shettles Method that claims to help with gender selection.

Gender selection is becoming a big item of discussion in the pregnancy realm lately. Many women have a preference as to what sex they would like their baby to be.

There are expensive, scientific methods of influencing the sex of the baby, but this article will touch upon a home method called the "Shettles Method" in influencing the sex of the baby.

The Shettles Method is named after Dr. Landrum Shettles who believed that the X and Y sperm characteristics are different from each other. The basic premise of this method is that under different circumstances, one can actually influence the sex of the baby.

The Basics of the Shettles Method

The sperm that fertilizes the egg is what determines whether the baby will be a boy or girl. The egg is always an X chromosome. The sperm can either be an X or Y. If an X-bearing sperm fertilizes the egg, the baby will be a girl, and will have the chromosomal characteristics of XX. If a Y-bearing sperm fertilizes the egg, the baby will be a boy, and will have the chromosomal characteristics of XY.

According to the Shettles Method, certain factors during the menstrual cycle or during sex can be manipulated to influence the sex of the baby. Since the X-chromosome-carrying sperm survives longer than the Y-chromosome-carrying sperm, having sex two to three days before ovulation, and then abstaining from sex in the two days leading up to ovulation will increase the chances that the Y-chromosome-carrying sperm will have died off before the egg is released. This will leave more opportunity for X-chromosome-carrying sperm to remain to fertilize the egg, therefore conceiving a girl.

Sexual positions that involve deep penetration should be avoided because this will give the Y-chromosome-carrying sperm more time to reach the cervix. Since the Y-chromosome-carrying sperm doesn't last as long, it will be given a better chance of reaching the cervix with deep penetration.

Since the X-bearing sperm prefers an acidic vaginal environment, orgasms are not recommended since they will make the environment less favorable.

How to Conceive a Boy, According to the Shettles Method

Keeping in mind that the Y-bearing sperm are faster swimmers than their counterparts, having sex as close to ovulation as possible will give the Y-bearing sperm an advantage.

Sexual positions that invlove deep penetration are encouraged to give the Y-bearing sperm a better chance of reaching the cervix faster than their counterparts.

Orgasms will create an favorable vaginal environment for the Y-bearing sperm, so reaching climax for the woman is helpful.

Fact or Fiction?

There really is no scientific proof that the Shettles Method truly works in gender selction. There are also a number of medical articles and journals that look at why the Shettles Method does not work. Some studies actually suggest that using the Shettles Method will make it more difficult to get pregnant.

As stated at the beginning of this article, only scientific methods - which are usually quite involved and expensive - will have high chances of conceiving the gender of choice. Home methods of trying to conceive a girl or boy is not a simple process. The Shettles Method can be attempted, but there are no guarantees that the sex of the baby will turn out to be as planned.

For more pregnancy-related information, please visit: www.complete-pregnancy-guide.com

The copyright of the article Gender Selection Using The Shettles Method in Family Planning is owned by Lisa Simonelli Rennie. Permission to republish Gender Selection Using The Shettles Method in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.