More Old Wives Tales for Pregnancy

We already covered the folk lore around predicting a baby’s gender, but the old wives tales don’t stop there! We’ve compiled a list of some of the weirdest pregnancy superstitions we could find.

• Got heartburn? If a mother has heartburn throughout her pregnancy, it was believed her baby will be born with lots of hair.
• Lookin’ good. There are two versions of this superstition: If a mother sees something extremely ugly, she will have an ugly baby; or, if a couple is happily married, they will have an attractive baby.



• Beware, the moon. A full moon was believed to bring on labor and birth.
• Lay off the caffeine. Drinking too much coffee during pregnancy could lead to your baby being born with light brown birthmarks.
• No strawberries and wine. Eating too many strawberries or drinking port wine during pregnancy will lead to the large purply-red birthmarks known as “port-wine stains”.
• Mind the neck. Hawaiian superstition says wearing a lei could cause the umbilical cord to wrap around a baby’s neck, while general lore says if you put your hands over your head will lead to the same thing.
• Dress the part. Wearing high heels during pregnancy may cause your baby to be cross-eyed.
• Boil some water! Boiling water has long been a cliché associated with pregnancy, but it’s never really been expressed what this water is needed for.

So where did these superstitions come from? Many have been around since long before medical science became involved in pregnancy, and were just a means to explain anomalies and tragedies. And even though many of these superstitions have been debunked by modern science, many moms still go by the “better safe than sorry” rule when it comes to old wives tales.

Got more superstitions to add to our list? Leave them in the comments below!