Woo while pregnant
2009 June 30
Help me out here, gang. I’m working on a new project (besides the baby) to keep me busy and I need some help. What’s the craziest “woo”/old wive’s tale/crazy theory you heard while pregnant? Hit me up via Twitter @tothepoints, or below in the comments.
For those of you who aren’t clear on what “woo” is, here’s a good definition from Skeptico:
“ideas that are irrational and not based on evidence commensurate with the extraordinary nature of the claim. These are ideas that usually rely on magical thinking, are rarely tested to see if they are real, and are usually resistant to reason and contrary evidence.”
For example, I was told (by a nurse, no less) that babies who won’t breastfeed turn out to be “wierd” in the long run.
that having lots of acne during pregnancy means you are having a girl. That proved wrong for me since I had a boy. Also, carrying high means it’s a girl. Also proved wrong. And I also heard that having dry hands means it’s a boy. I didn’t have dry hands. Whatever. ;-)
The one that drives me completely bonkers (because why someone thinks the 2 are in any way related truly baffles me) is when people said if you raise your arms while you’re pregnant the cord will wrap around the baby’s neck. I could debate the absurdity of that for quite a while. Another one was someone told me to my face that a cat takes away the breath from a baby. Like since I had cats, if they got near the baby, they would magically suck out all the oxygen near her and she would immediately suffocate. I know where that “theory” developed, but the fact she actually believed it was, well, just sad.