Contents:
- Medical Video: How To Choose The Gender Of Your Baby
- Why are there couples who want to determine the sex of the child?
- How is the sex of the baby determined?
- Determine the sex of the baby using the Shettles method
- Determine the sex of the baby with artificial insemination and IVF
Medical Video: How To Choose The Gender Of Your Baby
Determining the sex of a baby in the womb is considered an impossible thing to do. Some tips that are often expressed usually only end up as mere myths. However, in fact there are many successful couples who get babies with sex according to choice. Even though the accuracy is not 100%, the success rate is quite high. What method is used? Check out more below.
Why are there couples who want to determine the sex of the child?
Having children is the dream of many married couples. For some couples, having a boy or girl is not a problem, but there are also couples who want to have children of a certain sex. There are many reasons why parents want children of a certain sex, from their individual preferences, socio-cultural, to financial problems (boys to continue family business).
Health reasons such as the presence of genetic abnormalities in parents (which can be passed on to one of their children of a certain sex) can be a serious reason for parents to determine the sex of their child.
How is the sex of the baby determined?
Human sex is determined based on the composition of the sex chromosome when fertilization occurs. Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes, of which one pair is a sex chromosome. The sex chromosome in men consists of X and Y, whereas in women it consists of X and X.
Ovum or egg cells in women always have an X chromosome, while sperm in men can have X or Y chromosomes. When sperm meets an egg and fertilization occurs, the sperm will determine whether the fetus has a male or female sex. Y chromosome sperm will produce boys, while X chromosome sperm will produce girls.
There are many ways to help you determine the sex of the child. You can choose between natural or technological ways. The most common natural method is to use the Shettles method. Meanwhile, with technology there are several ways you can do such as artificial insemination or IVF.
Determine the sex of the baby using the Shettles method
The Shettles method was developed by Dr. Landrum B. Shettles as outlined in a book called How to Choose the Sex of Your Baby.
Sperm carrying male chromosomes are smaller in size, move faster, and have a shorter age than sperm carrying female chromosomes. Because of its nature, Shettles argues that the best time to have sex if you want to have a son is when it is near the time for the release of the egg (ovulation). That way the male sperm which will fertilize the egg faster than female sperm.
Meanwhile, female sperm has a longer age compared to male sperm. Therefore, the right time for sexual intercourse is 2-4 days before ovulation with the aim that only female sperm who are older will later fertilize the egg.
It was reported that the Shettles method has an effectiveness of up to 75%. So keep in mind that there is still a 25% chance that your child's gender will be different from what you want.
Determine the sex of the baby with artificial insemination and IVF
These two methods are the most commonly done to help you determine your child's gender. Both will require considerable costs and require you to take certain drugs.
With artificial insemination, sperm will be placed closer to the location where fertilization occurs (meeting between sperm and ovum). The most common method of artificial insemination is intrauterine insemination. By using a special instrument in the form of a small tube, the doctor will insert the sperm directly into the uterus.
Unlike artificial insemination, fertilization in the IVF method occurs outside the uterus. The doctor will ask you to take the medicine so that you produce more than one egg. The resulting egg cell will be taken and reunited with sperm in a petri dish. After 3-5 days, the result of conception that has now become an embryo will be inserted into the uterus. Usually if you are under 35 years old and in good health, no more than two embryos will be planted.
Both methods look different, but there is one similar step, namely choosing the sex of the desired sperm. There are several methods, one of which is the method swim up. With this method, male sperm will be taken, placed in a tube containing nutrients for sperm, then centrifuged. After centrifuge there will be a separation between semen, abnormal sperm and death, and normal healthy sperm. From the normal layer of sperm, male sperm that will swim faster to the surface faster than female sperm so that if you want a boy, this sperm will be taken to be fertilized with the egg later.
If you are interested in making IVF or artificial insemination methods, you can contact an obstetrician, especially those who are engaged in fertility.
