Superstitions Around The World
There are many superstitions around the globe when it comes to pregnancy and ensuring a healthy birth and newborn. Prior to modern western medicine, ancient cultures partook in what we would look at today as some very odd, potentially dangerous, and maybe illegal customs to ensure the safety and well-being of their pregnancies and births. However, in some cultures, the very commonplace practice of baptizing a newborn in most Western parenting is seen as cruel. Superstitions depend largely on their place of origin, and different cultures have always had ways of protecting their people. Some of the threads of those protections have made their way into modern cultures, and are still present today in the ways of superstitions, old wives tales, or rituals performed around pregnancy and birth.
Below are some common superstitions from around the world that still have roots in today’s way of divining the safety and well-being of the parents and baby-to-be:
Heartburn for Mom Means Hair for Baby
While we’re not sure where this one originated from, it is a fairly common belief that most people hold in regards to western pregnancies. If the mother is experiencing a lot of heartburn, there is a belief that the baby will be born with a full head of thick, dark hair.
Spicy Foods Will Cause Blindness
This one originates from Germany, where many believe if you eat spicy food during a pregnancy your baby has a higher chance of being born blind. If you’ve got an Oma that gets nervous when you order the buffalo wings, this could be why! However, in other cultures, spicy foods are thought to induce labor and are often recommended at the end of a pregnancy if you’re overdue.
Extreme Morning Sickness Means it's a Girl
This one is also not founded in any real medicine, as there are plenty of people who have given birth to a male child and experienced debilitating morning sickness. However, this is definitely another wivestale you will hear from time to time if you feel queasy in the mornings when pregnant!
Calling a Baby “Cute” Can Invite Bad Luck
In some cultures (mostly East Asian origins), calling a baby “cute” can be seen as inviting curses, bad luck, or even ghosts to inhabit the newborn. In Thailand, they have a saying that translates to “your baby is adorable and unpleasant” to ward off ghosts waiting to snatch it away for being too cute.
Where the Bump is Located Determines the Sex of the Baby
There are people who swear they can tell the sex of a baby based on where the mother is carrying the bump. If the baby is sitting high in the ribs, it’s thought to be a female baby, whereas if the bump swings low into the hips, it’s going to be a male. Again, this is not founded in any medical fact, and babies will carry wherever their parent’s body allows them to carry them safely.
Moonlight Influences Pregnancies and Births
This one has a few different variations based on who you ask. Some believe that more babies are born on a full moon, and in order to ensure they aren’t born too early, you have to either hide from the moonlight or wear a charm consisting of metal near your womb, such as a safety pin or metal brooch. The thought behind this is that the metal charm absorbs the moonlight instead of your baby, therefore protecting you from jump-starting labor. Another variation of this is the metal charm collects the moonlight and prevents birth variations such as cleft palate from forming.
Of course, many of these superstitions are not medically sound, and if you have any questions about the safety and development of your baby, you should speak to a medical professional. We at Beautiful Births and Beyond want to honor any traditions or cultural beliefs you may have that also allow for safe and healthy development of your baby, as well as safety and well-being for you!
If you have a superstition, an old wives tale, or something that’s been passed down through generations in your family about pregnancy and birth that you’d like to share, feel free to contact us! We’d love to hear from you!
