Vegan and we would love a daughter!!

[Shakti]

My husband and I have our hearts set on a daughter. I'm a vegan, which means that I eat no meat, fish, dairy, or eggs, though sometimes I will eat honey. My husband is a vegetarian and a huge coffee drinker. We both love our pastas and our curries.

I'm familiar with the timing methods, which we can of course use without altering. The dietary one however is a difficult one to navigate. Mainly we're curious about which vegetables, fruits, nuts, grains, and legumes are good to load up on and to avoid, and if things such as tofu, coffee, and dark chocolate are more likely to sway girl or boy. I'm also a big herbal tea drinker, so info on how that affects things is always appreciated as well, though I'm happy to just drink raspberry leaf tea (which I've heard sways girl and helps with reproductive health) if need be. Other foods I consume enough of where they should be considered, and I haven't found any good solid info on which gender they sway, are quinoa, kale, ginger, many other spices, seaweed, dark chocolate, cashew nuts, Brazil nuts, and maple syrup. We also eat a lot of brown rice and wholemeal pasta, but are wondering if we should switch to the whiter varieties while trying to conceive.

As of right now, on the dietary front, I am thinking that the French Gender Diet, with rice milk substituted for cow's milk, is the way to go, as it requires little to no meat and fish anyway, and I can stay on it for a while if it takes a while to conceive. Though one thing we eat a lot of which it says is forbidden is tomato sauce. I know that the varieties sold in many countries have long ingredient lists, but we're in the Netherlands, and the tomato paste which we use LOTS of on our pasta has only 1 ingredient, tomatoes, so would this be OK to keep using? And am I on the right track with my idea of modified French Gender Diet? And are there any foods or supplements that would be good for my husband to take?

As for anything else that may affect the outcome I enjoy fitness, particularly yoga. I practice Ashtanga yoga 6 mornings per week, which I definitely need to maintain no matter what to keep my sanity, and I also do cycling for fitness most days, and the odd pilates or kickboxing class here and there.

Thanks for any help that you guys can give. We will let our child make their own choice about what she/he eats, I just don't want to compromise my principles concerning what goes in my mouth at any point.

[fish2012]

hi hun,

gosh you sound like a girl baby machine :think: funny old world!

yes would switch to white rice and everything, count your protien perhaps you are getting lots and ditch the nuts I also know on french gender you should avoid pulses but not sure about on LE

I kinda think for everyone one variable is the important one, i think mine's diet cause i eat a boy boy diet, may be for you ph, cm or stress is more swaying or dh sperm count?

xx

[Shakti]

Oh, I read in one post about the French Gender Diet that walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, peanuts are OK as far as nuts go, nothing else. Though this was in another forum, and the most detailed summary of the French diet that I was able to Google. I would love it if someone could point me in the right direction of more detailed information on this diet. My English is fluent, though I doubt if I remember enough of the French I studied to be able to understand the original book!

Just curious as well how I sound like a girl baby machine, so I know what habits to keep up. I haven't measured mine or my husband's Ph yet, cm is a tough one to call because I'm still on anti-conception pills, and my stress levels do tend to be high.

We plan to start conceiving this coming March, so 7 months from now. Before I was on anti-conception, my periods were irregular. We know we definitely need to buy the ovulation predictor with the microscope, otherwise this could get expensive if we use the disposable ones. So either I go off the pill in March, use the microscope daily, and abstain on days where it looks like my body is getting ready to ovulate. Or I go off the pill a few months before, use a diaphragm as protection, chart my cycles, and hope that somehow my menstruation becomes regular again. And with the diet, I am incorporating elements of the girl diet right now and trying to minimize boy foods, then I'll switch to a strictly girl diet 3 months before we start conceiving.

Thanks again for your help!!

[Zivic-Bubac]

Hi and welcome!
As a vegan, you have higher chances for a girl :agree:
Im not an expert for pink sway, I wanted to ask you where did you find the info that raspberry leaf tea sways pink? I know it's a fertility enhancer as it helps with uterus lining etc. but I coudln't find anything about its pink effects?

The reason I'm asking is bcos I'm currently pg with failed sway (3rd girl) and I'm planning to drink RRL tea for my next blue sway in 2 years or so :)

[BabyGirl4Me]

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I ate a vegan diet for years before I conceived my son. Just being vegan didn't get me the daughter I ache for so badly, so I'd suggest reading through the material on diet to conceive a girl very closely and following that, and perhaps adding a few supplements if you see fit. Stay away from avocados and foods that sway blue! I also ate a lot of tofu and soy meat alternatives so I think those foods sway blue for me and I think that's a big reason why I conceived a boy. I'm praying that I'm not gynxed and incapable of conceiving a girl...I guess time will tell when I do my sway. But being on that vegan diet makes me sooo afraid that may be the case for me. :( :( :(

Best of luck to you on getting your girl and kudos for choosing a healthy lifestyle that promotes kindness for animals and the planet. :)

[NCBeachyGrl]

I just wanted to add that the LE diet seems to be the biggest sway factor and that means eating no meat, low protein, low calorie, low fat, and low nutrient food, skipping breakfast, and only eating 2-3 meals a day. From what I have seen, eating vegan or vegetarian doesn't necessarily mean you are eating low protein, low nutrient foods as soy products, nuts, etc. contain a ton of protein!

Definitely dive into the all the research atomic has done and find a plan that works best for you! Good luck!!!!

[Shakti]

Thanks guys for your replies. I know being vegan makes a girl more likely, but definitely not guaranteed, plenty of vegans have conceived sons. We haven't conceived any children yet so can't really comment, but a daughter is very important to us for personal reasons, and chances are we're only going to have 2 children, so my husband made a good point that if we sway now, the chances are extremely low that we'll have no daughters after having 2 children.

There are plenty of items such as soya milk, bananas, avocados, salty food, orange juice, etc. which are vegan and sway boy, I've also heard that meat replacers are a big one as they're often high in protein and sodium.

As for raspberry leaf tea, I do remember seeing that on another forum, I can't remember offhand where though. I would like to know if there are any herbal teas I can have though, peppermint tea isn't so easy to find here in Holland, though I've never looked for it before. Mint tea however is very easy to find.

And vegan certainly doesn't equal low protein, as any vegan who has been asked the "Where do you get your protein?" question can attest to! I get the impression beans are out, and as the quinoa I asked about earlier is packed with protein, I get the impression that one is as well, but would love to know for sure. Also curious now about spicy food, something else that came to mind that I eat a lot of.

Another important variable that I've noticed as I lurk through these forums is that the health nut top notch organic food vegan lifestyle does tend to sway boy, while the more basic and maybe more unhealthy vegan lifestyle tends to sway girl.

Babygirl4me, congratulations yourself on choosing this lifestyle, it's very rewarding!! :-)

[Yuzu]

Isn't tofu high in protein as well? If so, it would definitely sway blue.

[Shakti]

Tofu is a soya product, which I know sways boy, but it's also a fermented food, which I've heard mixed reviews about.

[Shakti]

Just to update with the results of my research so far, I'm now thinking that a good short food list that I should definitely try to include regularly are frozen strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries, apples, kiwis, white grapes, mushrooms, carrots, aubergine (aka eggplant), cooked tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers, asparagus, capsicum (aka bell peppers), kale, any and all leafy greens that are also good for my sway (help????), rice, pasta, walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, peanuts, strawberry jam, and any and all herbal teas that are good for my sway (again, help????? Very important, as herbal teas are something I practically live off of), and tons of rice milk.

There's also some other foods that I'm fond of that I can't figure out whether they're OK or not. Kale I'm still not 100% sure on, also quinoa, seaweed and other sea vegetables, lemon and lime juice, aniseed/licorice, coffee, dried cranberries, raisons, Thai curry paste, vinegar, yam (sweet potato), onion, corn, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, olive oil, and multigrain bread. Also, what herbs and spices tend to sway pink vs. blue? What are some other good vegetables to include? Does seitan sway pink or blue? Also, my husband and I have a tradition every Saturday where we make pancakes with flour, sugar, baking powder, rice milk, and sunflower oil, with our choice of fruit and maple syrup, is this a tradition we can still carry on with?

On the exercise front, I practice Ashtanga yoga 6 mornings per week first thing, and I do wish to carry on with this regardless of which way it sways. I plan on going for my yoga teacher training shortly after I have this baby, so I need to keep up my practice. I also have a gym membership, and I do group classes on most days, usually spinning, zumba, tae bo for cardio, and pilates or XCO for strength. I don't think XCO has spread that far outside of the Netherlands or Europe, yet, its basically a class that strengthens the core without bulking up. None of the strength training I do uses actual weights as resistance. If the weather is nice, I often take my bike for a long ride. My husband and I also try to go to the pool and swim laps together whenever we can. The group classes at my gym all go for 45 minutes each, where I read that 60 minutes of cardio 6-7 days per week is best, so would I also need to go straight to the treadmill after the class in order to make the 1 hour of cardio? That, or, Ashtanga yoga is often light cardio and all of my practices are at least 1 hour, so is that enough for my 60 minutes per day? Finally, should I cut any of the exercises I mentioned in this paragraph out when we're trying to conceive? Still trying to get my head around the best plan as far as exercise goes.

As far as the baby dance itself goes, my husband and I feel that we still want this sex to feel enjoyable and special considering what we're creating, not like a chore. So we'd rather try to have sex every day untill I'm 3 or so days away from ovulating than do anything that requires abstaining. I did read that hot baths or showers for the man do help for swaying pink, how true is that? If that is true, we could easily have a ritual of "warming up" in the bath or shower first before making love. :-)

Thanks again for you guys' help. As an interesting side note, my husband works in IT, and all of his collegues who have kids are men and have only daughters except for 2. Of course they're around computers all day, which boosts positive ions, and he says they drink LOTS of coffee, which I read raises estrogen, not such a good thing for the mothers to be who want girls, but definitely good for the fathers to be.

That, and we've been in love with the name Estella for our future daughter ever since we met, hopefully this will work to bring Estella into our lives....

[atomic sagebrush]

Hi and thanks so much for your patience - this was an indepth thread so wanted to be sure I was able to give you as full an answer as I could rather than trying to rush through. I am going to post links for you on things that I have essays about, and then answer things I don't have links for.

1)Timing has been totally debunked and several of us got our girls doing Shettles boy timing after 2,3,4 or even more Shettles cutoff opposites. Although some people still choose to include it, it can really cut down your odds of conception by a lot. Here's the case against timing http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gender-swaying-discussion-ttc-boy-girl-home-swaying-info/7691-trouble-timing.html

2)There are two takes on the diet issue - there's the FGD/InGender approach where there are "magic" foods that can sway one direction or the other, and then there is the LE Diet approach where it is the nutritional content of your diet and your physical condition/fertility as a whole that sways and there are no magic foods. http://genderdreaming.com/forum/science-behind-gender-swaying/466-myth-magic-foods.html I think the data strongly points in the direction that it's your diet as a whole that matters and concerns over this food or that food and which way it sways, are something that you can safely not concern yourself with. If you're eating a lower protein, lower cal, lower fat, lower nutrient diet overall, keeping your blood sugar on the lower side, and lowering your husband's sperm count (high coffee intake and sitting at a desk all day long may be swaying pink for you) As a result, questions about how any given food sway, are really not something I can answer, because I believe that quinoa, herbs, etc. are all fine to eat as a part of your diet overall and not something that if you ingest, they can magically make you conceive a baby of either gender. Tomato sauce is 100% allowed on LE Diet and I can assure you I ate tons of it when I conceived my DD after avoiding it with my FGD/IGD sway opposite.

Some foods are better than others because some foods have a lot of nutrients in them, but you can eat ANY food you like as long as you stick to the LE Diet principles of 1500-1800 cals a day, 40-50 g protein, 25-60 g fat (20-30% of your day's cals from fat, so this number can vary) and lowering nutrients by eating fewer calories overall, cutting out highly fortified foods like energy bars and breakfast cereal, and eliminating prenatal vitamins. Some foods, like dark chocolate, seaweed, nuts, are very nutritionally dense foods, and are better off avoided most of the time or replaced with similar, less nutrient packed foods.

The scientific rationale behind the LE Diet is found here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gender-swaying-discussion-ttc-boy-girl-home-swaying-info/12340-understanding-trivers-willard-hypothesis.html

The case against calcium/magnesium levels swaying is found here (this is three parts, links in the first part to the other two, and the discussion after the threads, particularly after the third part, is also very illuminating.)http://genderdreaming.com/forum/trying-conceive-girl/610-calcium-conundrum-controversial.html

To quickly give you an overview of the foods you mention:

Herb teas not allowed on FGD/IGD, except peppermint. Ok on LE Diet but we have had several opposites with people who were doing the RRLT and I think it sways blue by boosting fertility.

All herbs and spices forbidden on IGD - not totally sure on FGD but I believe they are forbidden. They are allowed on LE Diet.

Quinoa forbidden on FGD/IGD due to high potassium. Allowed on LE Diet.

Kale forbidden on IGD, not sure on FGD, probably. Allowed on LE Diet.

Seaweed forbidden on IGD, not sure on FGD. Allowed on LE Diet but prob. best limited/avoided due to high nutrient content.

All chocolate forbidden on FGD/IGD. Milk and white choc. allowed on LE Diet but dark choc is best limited/avoided due to high nutrient content.

Nuts/seeds other than sesame are forbidden on IGD. I think there's one nut that is ok on FGD (almonds??) but most nuts have tons of potassium and so are not allowed. Nuts ok in small amounts on LE Diet as long as it fits in yoru totals for the day, but they are very nutrient dense and so they may not be your first choice.

Maple syrup forbidden on IGD, not sure on FGD. Allowed on LE Diet.

White rice and white pasta are believed best on all three diets, but if you have any insulin resistance or PCOS, you should use whole grains rather than refined grains to keep insulin issues under control.

Rice milk (unfortified) is allowed on all three diets - be wary of the highly fortified rice milks, they may add more nutrients than you want.

Soy foods are a tricky subject and we're really not certain how they sway. I have an essay on soy here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gender-swaying-discussion-ttc-boy-girl-home-swaying-info/1881-super-soy-girl-boy.html Soy is a no-no on IGD/FGD, and should be used in moderation on LE Diet due to high protein and nutrient content, BUT it can be a great option for your husband. Husbands don't need to follow LE Diet with their wives, but increasing soy foods can be a great way for him to help your sway.

Tomato sauce and paste are forbidden on IGD/FGD due to potassium content but they are allowed and in fact encouraged on LE Diet. You NEED 2500-3500 mg potassium for health and people have made themselves ill trying to limit potassium on IGD/FGD.

Aside from soy foods, your husband may want to try licorice root 450 mg taken 3 times a day, from your CD 1-CD 14.

Info on exercise is found here: http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gender-swaying-discussion-ttc-boy-girl-home-swaying-info/1411-exercise-enigma-both-genders.html

[atomic sagebrush]

Hi and welcome!
As a vegan, you have higher chances for a girl :agree:
Im not an expert for pink sway, I wanted to ask you where did you find the info that raspberry leaf tea sways pink? I know it's a fertility enhancer as it helps with uterus lining etc. but I coudln't find anything about its pink effects?

The reason I'm asking is bcos I'm currently pg with failed sway (3rd girl) and I'm planning to drink RRL tea for my next blue sway in 2 years or so :)

Zivic, IG has RRLT listed as swaying pink because it supposedly raises progesterone, but you may remember that the data on progesterone swaying pink is highly sketchy and not much hard evidence in support of it. We've gotten opposites with pink swayers drinking RRLT.

[atomic sagebrush]

Re the pill - coming off the birth control pill tends to sway pink so my advice would be to TTC as quickly as you can after coming off of them. It is a major step in the wrong direction to come off the pill to track your cycles to do timing, because the Pill actually does sway pink, while timing does not.

[atomic sagebrush]

MOre foods you mentioned -

Bananas forbidden on IGD/FGD but allowed on LE Diet (remember, you need 2500-3500 mg potassium for survival)

Avocado - forbidden on IGD/FGD and not encouraged on LE Diet BUT a good rescue food for a day when you are low in cals, fat, and potassium but high on protein.

Don't worry too much about the sodium, we're really not even sure how it sways.

Orange juice is very nutritious and should be avoided/limited on LE, but is good as a flavoring agent. It's forbidden on IGD/FGD due to potassium.

Any kind of mint tea is good - spearmint does the same as peppermint. If you decide to take saw palmetto for your sway, please note that you cannot do both mint tea and saw palmetto and also mint tea is not safe during pg - you must stop drinking it at ovulation.

Beans are not allowed on IGD/FGD. They are allowed on LE Diet but should be limited.

Spicy food not allowed on IGD/FGD. 100% fine on LE Diet (including curry!!)

I agree 100% with your take on veganism and swaying - you absolutely can conceive both genders on vegan diets and it comes down to the overall quality and nutrition of each individual's diet.

[atomic sagebrush]

Ok no offense meant, but this listing foods is getting a bit time consuming for me, are you kind of following what I'm saying or do I need to go through each food?? an individual food does not sway in and of itself, it's your diet as a whole that matters.

RE exercise, shrinking muscle sways pink, growing muscle sways blue, so if you're losing weight on a low protein diet, you may be able to get away with exercise that would sway blue for someone eating a different diet. Exercise doesn't exist in isolation, it's exercise in concert with diet and weight loss/gain that sways.

Showers for you and baths for DH are one of those things that can't hurt and may help. I personally think it's fine for both of you to have a bath or a shower first, but I know on IG they do not recommend that DW take a bath because they think it raises vaginal pH.

The idea that caffeine sways blue has been debunked, several of us have gotten girls drinking a lot of caffeine.

[Shakti]

Very indepth, and thank you for taking the time to respond! Many months spent researching and being bombarded with information geared towards omnivores meant many, many questions! Huge time zone difference, so I think I'm doing all of my responding while it's nighttime for you. And it does help, so much, and thank you for making some good suggestions that fit in with my lifestyle.

Ok, first, here is my revised plan, and everyone please feel free to chime in on if there's anything that I am probably doing wrong.

We plan on starting to try to conceive whenever in March 2013 my current month's supply of The Pill runs out. Diet-wise, I currently eat 2000-2200 or so calories per day. I've also been experimenting with girly foods and coming up with recipes, as well as trying to incorporate more of them into my diet. Then I plan on implementing the diet fully as soon as the holiday season is over, which should be 2.5-3 months before I'm off The Pill. This includes no more alcohol, with one exception for my birthday which is in February. I'm likely going to plan on shooting for the 1500-1800 calorie window, as well as cutting out all strength training that isn't yoga at this time. As far as my husband goes, his calorie needs are WAY higher than mine, he's a 2m tall (that is, 6'6") Dutchman who weight trains twice per week, so cooking a separate batch of tofu for most dinners for just him seems to be a very easy way to both help him meet his calorie needs while I'm restricting mine, as well as to make his hormone levels more girl-friendly. Especially easy as the girl-friendly meals of stir-fries and pastas are something we eat a lot of anyway. Win-win. And I really hope our kids inherit his metabolism!! And I'm glad that I'm 175 cm (5'10"), otherwise I could only imagine how big our baby will get relative to my size while still in utero. :-)

The article you posted on timing was the only one that I hadn't read yet, very interesting, and it does make a lot of sense. So now I'm thinking the best way is to increase the amount of sex to at least once per day every day from when I finish my period untill I'm 1 day after ovulation. After ovulation, no rules about when or how often we have sex. Good to know too that a bath or shower is fairly trivial, helps us to have more sex!! I'll also plan on using Rephresh on a regular basis to tweak my Ph.

And a few more questions:

1. On the exercise front, should I be OK then if I stick with my Ashtanga yoga practice + minimum 6 hours of cardio per week spread out over at least 6 days? I'd also love to stick with the Tae Bo classes I've been doing even though I read in another thread that my body thinking it's in fighting mode can up my testosterone, I usually do 1-2 per week, and I'd describe it more as punching and kicking movements set to house music, I've only ever punched something, and never someone, in 1 class. Of course I do plan on cutting out all strength training that is not yoga 3 months before trying to conceive.
2. Also exercise, is swimming a good cardio activity to introduce, or am I better off waiting untill I am actually pregnant? I've heard mixed things.
3. Good to know that I can still drink lots of coffee, but is there a maximum number of cups I should drink per day?
4. I also checked the nutrition label of the rice milk I use, and as far as key nutrients go, 1 litre (about 1/4 gallon, which I think is what the French Baby Diet calls for with dairy every day) provides 150% of calcium, B12, and D2. Should this be ok, or should I check out the brands at my health food store? I know they sell one that isn't fortified. And how much of it per day would you recommend that I drink?
5. As I'm sure that every now and then there will be an occasion I'll be fed forbidden foods, especially when we're at his parents', what are the rules on how often I can deviate from my diet without affecting my sway? This is the only time I'll allow myself to deviate by the way.
6. If I'm meant to skip breakfast, how many calories does it take to raise my blood sugar to the point where I might as well have had breakfast? I ask because I find my coffee way more drinkable with some rice milk added in. Breakfast for me right now, at least during the week, is usually a green smoothie (frozen fruit, an apple or some kiwi, kale, and often ginger), but I'm happy to cut this out if need be.
7. Does position really make a difference? And does the woman's orgasm really sway?

So freaking good to know that mint tea, coffee, spicy food, and tomato paste are all still good! I think I'm good with food issues for now, though some other questions may come up.

Also so helpful to know that me being on The Pill right now actually helps my sway. So I'm thinking that maybe I won't even bother with ovulation predictor kits, not sure yet. In any case, definitely the less time it takes me to conceive the better, I'll be 31 when we attempt and my husband will be 33/34.

Thinking now that for now then, I'll switch from a health conscious vegan diet to a cheap student-style vegan diet.

Also not really sure how we'll go with supplements, but I do take acidophilis already to help my immunity. I've heard this can sway girl for some, boy for others, but another reason I plan on using Rephresh just to be sure.

I did try looking up Saw Palmetto on the website of a Dutch store that sells nutritional supplements, all I came up with was a pill to help with mens' prostate issues, probably not what I want. I posted a question on the Dutch section of these forums just now to see if anyone knows.

Thank you again, and can't wait to hold our Estella!! :-)

[babygirl]

hi the saw palmetto is for mens prostate and is the one you want as long as it only has saw palmetto standardised in it and nothing else. You want to take 320mg once a day. or you can drink peppermint/spearmint tea 3 times a day but use 2 tea bags in each cup
hope that helps

[atomic sagebrush]

Wow I'm so sorry I never saw this post at all, it was right after I had my baby and it must have sneaked past me somehow!

1)I don't know if it's ok or not. Unfortunately I just don't have the data to say. I do think you should drop the Tae Bo because while I understand it's just punching and kicking the air, your body doesn't know the difference and it just feels too risky to me.

2)I personally think swimming is ok, but the InGender people think it may sway blue by raising pH. I'd just use some RepHresh before/after to lower pH.

3)I drank quite a lot of coffee - 4 cups a day and sometimes more. I don't know if there's a "right" amount, it probably varies by person.

4)Unfortified rice milk is best, and the amount you drink depends on the number of calories you are taking in in a day.

5)Occasional cheats are ok, try to keep them minimal and even when you cheat, it can be good to try to stick within the limits of the diet for that day regardless.

6)A bit of rice milk in coffee is fine in the morning. I think the smoothie would be a fine first meal too - pretty low cal and low protein, no fat

7)Position prob. doesn't make much of a difference http://genderdreaming.com/forum/gender-swaying-discussion-ttc-boy-girl-home-swaying-info/1143-best-sex-positions-babies-particular-gender-just-getting-pregnant.html Orgasms in general can raise testosterone, and having one at the time of your attempt may produce lubricant fluid that helps sperm to survive, so they're best avoided - but I had one when I got my DD.

Acidophilus is great for swaying pink or blue. Yeast infections can be terrible for swayers and the probiotics help keep pH stable.

Yes, the saw palmetto is just the same stuff - they market it to men for prostate issues but women can take it too It's not dangerous for women to take.