Old Wives' Tales: True or False? Pregnancy Edition

Name: Old Wives' Tales: True or False? Pregnancy Edition
Author: Cynthia Obinatu

Ten things Nigerian families tell a pregnant woman, from bump shape to cold water. Tap True, False or It depends, then see the answer and the source. Educational, not medical advice.

This game needs JavaScript. Here are all the answers and their sources.

Pregnant women must eat for two. Answer: False. You will probably feel hungrier than usual. The NHS says you still do not need to eat for two, even with twins or triplets. Choose a mix of foods through the day, such as yam, rice or beans, fish or eggs, and plenty of vegetables. Source: NHS: Have a healthy diet in pregnancy.
If your bump sits low and wide, it is a boy. If it sits high and pointed, it is a girl. Answer: False. A first pregnancy tends to sit higher because the stomach muscles have not been stretched before, and later pregnancies tend to sit lower. Bump position reflects her body. It does not tell you the baby's sex. A scan can show the sex, and we never guess. Source: University of Utah Health: Which pregnancy myths are actually true?; NHS: 20-week scan.
Heartburn in pregnancy means the baby will have plenty of hair. Answer: It depends. A small study of 64 women found that more heartburn went with babies born with more hair. The pattern appeared across the group. It cannot predict how much hair one baby will have. Heartburn is common in pregnancy, and it does not tell you how your baby will look. Source: Pregnancy folklore revisited: the case of heartburn and hair (Birth, 2006).
Cold water is bad in pregnancy. It gives the baby a cold. Answer: False. The NHS says colds are caused by viruses. They do not come from the temperature of what you drink. The NHS list of foods and drinks to avoid in pregnancy does not include cold water, so drink water the way you like it. Source: NHS: Common cold; NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancy.
A pregnant woman should not eat pawpaw. Answer: It depends. In a lab study on rat uteri, the latex in unripe or half-ripe pawpaw caused strong contractions, and the authors said that fruit could be unsafe in pregnancy. Fully ripe pawpaw did not do this. The study was on animals, so more research in people is needed. Ask your midwife or doctor if you are unsure. Source: Papaya consumption in pregnancy: fact or fable? (British Journal of Nutrition, 2002).
If a pregnant woman looks at something ugly or frightening, her baby will look like it. Answer: False. This one comes from families who want to protect the baby. A baby's looks are shaped by genes, and a baby gets one copy of each gene from each parent. Birthmarks are not caused by anything a parent did or did not do in pregnancy. If something frightened you, you did nothing wrong. Source: MedlinePlus Genetics: What is a gene?; Cleveland Clinic: Birthmarks; KidsHealth: Birthmarks.
Walking and light exercise are safe for most pregnant women. Answer: True. The NHS says exercise is safe for you and your baby in pregnancy, and aims for about 150 minutes of moderate activity a week. ACOG says that if you are healthy and your pregnancy is normal, regular activity does not raise your risk of miscarriage or early birth. Start slowly, and ask your midwife if you have a health condition. Source: NHS: Exercise in pregnancy; ACOG: Exercise during pregnancy.
Snails are not safe to eat in pregnancy. Answer: It depends. The NHS foods-to-avoid list does not name snails. Raw or undercooked snails are the problem, because they can carry a parasite called rat lungworm, and the CDC says not to eat them raw or undercooked where the parasite is found. Buy from a clean source and cook snails all the way through. Source: CDC: Rat lungworm, preventing infection; NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancy.
If you crave sweet things, you are having a girl. Answer: False. A survey of 500 women who had been pregnant found that sweet and salty foods were the most craved. It found no link between what women craved and the sex of their babies. Source: Pregnancy cravings and health factors, a population study in Jordan (BMJ Open, 2024).
Agbo and other herbal mixtures are safe in pregnancy because they are natural. Answer: False. Many herbal mixtures have never been studied in pregnancy. Some contain drugs that are not listed on the label. About one in five pregnant women in an Ibadan study used herbal medicine. Herbal remedies are part of many families' care, so tell your midwife or doctor what you take. Source: Unprescribed and herbal medicine use in pregnancy in Ibadan, Nigeria (BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies, 2023); Herbal medicine use during pregnancy, with a focus on sub-Saharan Africa (Frontiers in Pharmacology, 2020).

Your answers, with the sources

Educational, not medical advice. These are common beliefs checked against the sources listed below. They are not yet reviewed by a clinician, and they cannot tell you anything about your own pregnancy. The game runs on your phone. Nothing you pick is saved or sent anywhere.

When to see a doctor or midwife

Speak to your midwife or doctor before you take any herbal mixture, medicine or supplement in pregnancy. Go to your clinic or hospital the same day if you have bleeding, strong pain, a baby moving less than usual, or a feeling that something is wrong. Do not use an old wives' tale to decide whether something is wrong.

Written by Cynthia Obinatu, community and editorial lead. Sourced, not yet reviewed by a clinician.

How the Old Wives' Tales game works

You will see ten things that families, aunties and neighbours tell pregnant women in Nigeria. Pick True, False or It depends. The answer and the source show straight away, so you learn something on every screen.

Read one claim at a time.
Tap True, False or It depends.
Read the answer and open the source.
See your score and send it to a friend.

What True, False and It depends mean here

True means the claim holds up in the sources. False means the sources do not support it. It depends means the claim is partly right, or right for one situation and wrong for another.

Many of these beliefs come from people who love you and wanted to protect the baby in times when scans and clinics were far away. We explain each one and we never laugh at it. Faith and cultural practices, such as keeping a pin on your clothes or praying over a pregnancy, are not claims about the body, so the game does not rule on them. Pick the ones that comfort you, and keep your antenatal visits too.

For more on the foods aunties have opinions about, read Tiger nut, bitter kola, cloves. To check a food on your plate, use the Safe Foods Checklist.

Common questions

Is this medical advice?

No. The game is educational, and every answer is checked against the sources listed on the page. It is not yet reviewed by a clinician. Ask your midwife or doctor about your own pregnancy.

Why do some answers say It depends?

Some beliefs are partly right. Pawpaw is a good example, because unripe fruit is the concern and ripe fruit is a different case.

Does False mean my family is wrong to care?

No. Many of these tales come from care. The answer only checks the claim against the evidence.

Is my score saved?

No. Your picks stay on your phone. If you share your result, the link and the picture show your result only, never your picks.

Where this comes from

NHS: Have a healthy diet in pregnancy. NHS.
University of Utah Health: Which pregnancy myths are actually true?. University of Utah Health.
NHS: 20-week scan. NHS.
Pregnancy folklore revisited: the case of heartburn and hair (Birth, 2006). Johns Hopkins University.
NHS: Common cold. NHS.
NHS: Foods to avoid in pregnancy. NHS.
Papaya consumption in pregnancy: fact or fable? (British Journal of Nutrition, 2002). PubMed, British Journal of Nutrition.
MedlinePlus Genetics: What is a gene?. US National Library of Medicine.
Cleveland Clinic: Birthmarks. Cleveland Clinic.
KidsHealth: Birthmarks. Nemours KidsHealth.
NHS: Exercise in pregnancy. NHS.
ACOG: Exercise during pregnancy. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
CDC: Rat lungworm, preventing infection. US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Pregnancy cravings and health factors, a population study in Jordan (BMJ Open, 2024). BMJ Open.
Unprescribed and herbal medicine use in pregnancy in Ibadan, Nigeria (BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies, 2023). BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies.
Herbal medicine use during pregnancy, with a focus on sub-Saharan Africa (Frontiers in Pharmacology, 2020). Frontiers in Pharmacology.

Every answer is checked against the sources above and is not yet reviewed by a clinician. Read it alongside our editorial policy and medical policy.

Go further

More than a game: The First Pregnancy Plan

The week-by-week guide to your whole pregnancy: what is happening, what is normal, safe eating, your scans and tests, and getting ready for birth, plus a community of mums at your stage. Start when you are ready.

Explore The First Pregnancy Plan →

Old Wives' Tales: True or False? Pregnancy Edition

When to see a doctor or midwife

How the Old Wives' Tales game works

What True, False and It depends mean here

Common questions

Where this comes from

More than a game: The First Pregnancy Plan

Related

Tiger nut, bitter kola, cloves

Safe Foods Checklist

Week-by-Week Tracker

Trimester by trimester