The science behind diet-based gender swaying.

Julia Carless
Jun 13
3 min read

Mineral Intake and Gender Swaying: A Review of Evidence - how to conceive a girl or boy.

How to conceive a girl science - gender swaying

Foundational Research: Herbst’s Discovery in Marine Biology

The earliest recorded observation linking mineral concentration to sex determination dates back to 1928, when German scientist Curt Herbst studied the marine worm Bonellia viridis. He demonstrated that altering the concentration of calcium and potassium ions in the surrounding seawater influenced the sex of the larvae. Higher concentrations of potassium favored male offspring, whereas elevated calcium concentrations increased the proportion of females (Herbst, 1928).

Animal Studies: Reproducible Evidence Across Species

Subsequent animal research has consistently reinforced the connection between dietary mineral composition and the sex ratio of offspring:

Mitra et al. (1989): In rats, diets lower in sodium and potassium relative to calcium and magnesium favored the birth of females.Reference: Mol Reprod Dev. 1989;23(4):415–420.
Vahidi et al. (2007): Statistically significant shifts in offspring sex ratios were observed in rats based on ionic intake, with Na/K-enriched diets favoring males and Ca/Mg-enriched diets favoring females.Pakistan J Nutr. 2007;6(1):44–48.
Chandraju et al. (2011): Confirmed the influence of calcium and magnesium ions in shifting the secondary sex ratio toward female offspring in murine models.Int J Pharm Chem Biol Sci. 2013;3(1):19–24.
Abd Elraouf Oun et al. (2016): Rats fed calcium and magnesium before conception showed a 60.8% female offspring rate, while sodium and potassium increased male births to 56.8%.Res Obstet Gynecol. 2016;4(1):11–15.
Alhimaidi et al. (2021): In sheep, maternal diets rich in Na/K produced 77% male lambs, while Ca/Mg diets resulted in 73% females, confirming cross-species consistency.Saudi J Biol Sci. 2021;28(1):680–684.

Human Research: Clinical and Observational Findings

Human studies have mirrored these animal findings, with various research projects linking preconceptional maternal mineral intake to offspring sex ratios:

Stolkowski & Lorrain (1980, 1981): Diets altering the Na+K/Ca+Mg ratio resulted in ~80% success in achieving the desired sex among over 300 couples.Int J Gynaecol Obstet. 1980;18(6):440–443. Isr J Med Sci. 1981;17:1061–1067.
Papa et al. (1983): Reported over 80% success in influencing sex outcome through diet alone, forming the basis of his clinical guide Boy or Girl: Choosing Your Child Through Diet.J Gynecol Obstet Biol Reprod (Paris). 1983;12:415–422.
Mathews et al. (2008): A large-scale UK study (n=740) found that higher maternal intake of sodium and potassium was significantly associated with male births.Proc R Soc B Biol Sci. 2008;275:1661–1668.
Noorlander et al. (2010): A Dutch prospective study combining diet and timing of intercourse showed up to 81% success in female preselection. Diet alone, when adhered to correctly, achieved a 73% success rate.Reprod Biomed Online. 2010;21(6):794–802. doi:10.1016/j.rbmo.2010.08.010.
Edessy et al. (2016): In Egypt, a clinical trial with 200 women showed 76% success for male births with Na/K-rich diets and 72% for females with Ca/Mg-rich diets.Int J Curr Res Med Sci. 2016;2(12):16–22.
Farhud et al. (2022): A retrospective observational study in Iran involving 285 women showed success rates of 83% and 87% for boy and girl preference groups respectively using diet and ovulation timing.Iran J Public Health. 2022;51(8).

Conclusion

Both historical and contemporary research - ranging from marine biology and rodent studies to clinical human trials - support the hypothesis that preconceptional maternal mineral intake can influence the likelihood of conceiving a child of a specific sex. Though the exact mechanisms remain under investigation, evidence across species consistently indicates that:

Higher sodium and potassium intake correlates with a higher proportion of male offspring.
Higher calcium and magnesium intake correlates with a higher proportion of female offspring.