Patient's question:
I am 28 years old and have a 3-year-old daughter. Now that the country has relaxed the two-child policy, my husband's family has a very strong preference for sons, especially my mother-in-law who has always wanted me to give them a boy. I've heard many people drink baking soda water during pregnancy and use it to rinse the vagina before intercourse to have a boy.I would like to get the following help: Has anyone taken sodium bicarbonate tablets to have a boy?
Doctor's answer:
The gender of a child is inherently random. Each human cell contains an equal number of two types of chromosomes: the X chromosome and the Y chromosome. Male chromosomes are formed by the combination of one X and one Y chromosome, while female chromosomes consist of two X chromosomes. When a mature egg combines with an X-carrying sperm, the result is a girl; when it combines with a Y-carrying sperm, the result is a boy:X sperm + X egg → girl (XX)
Y sperm + X egg → boy (XY)
Therefore, the gender of a child depends on which type of sex chromosome (X or Y) from the male sperm combines with the egg. It is neither determined by the wife nor the husband, but entirely a matter of chance.