Amy Oshier
Mom-to-be Kiki Palmer lit up the internet with her pregnant glow and barely bulging baby bump. She announcement she was expecting when she hosted Saturday Night Live in December and that opened the floodgates for baby-daddy Darius Jackson to start posting pics on his Instagram account.
Kiki and other celebs aren’t the only ones sharing their preggie pics either- clearly everyone is obsessed with Bumps. It’s nothing new really. Dating back to our grandma’s time at least, people have looked at mom’s belly to make determinations about the baby within. Ranging from size to sex- even whether the baby might make an early arrival. But is all of this simply an old wive’s tale? Passed down from generation to generation.
As it happens, medical experts have taken a look and weighed in. In reality there are a few things doctors may be able to glean by the bump’s position. Here are a few of the more persistent beliefs:
- Carrying high or low: It’s been said that high is a boy, low is a girl. But the low-down is…no correlation. An ob-gyn will surely knock down this one. You can’t tell the sex of the baby based on where mom is carrying. Sorry.
- The bump’s position is more linked to the mom’s height, specifically the length of her mid-section. Shorter waisted moms tend to carry lower than their taller counterparts.
- How big the baby will be. The bigger the bump, the bigger the baby? Not so fast. Doctors will measure the bump and use it as part of their exam, but that’s not the biggest determinant of weight.What really matters is the baby’s body size which is reflected and measured in ultrasounds. A big bump is more connected to weaker abs or if the mom is relatively short.
Despite the bump not being a good indicator of sex of size, there are a couple of things it is telling you.
- A lumpy bump may be an indication that uterine fibroids are present- or possibly growing- within. These are not uncommon and may occasionally grow during pregnancy with the increase in hormones. If fibroids do grow at this time it’s typically during the first trimester. Your doctor will closely monitor the situation.
- The bump can give a hint whether this is a first baby. Your body recognizes what’s going on if you’ve been through it before. With that memory in mind, moms tend to show sooner and lower in subsequent pregnancies. As the ab muscles were stretched before they are a bit weaker which leads to carrying lower than a first time mom.
So, Kiki’s bump may be the cutest thing ever- but the only thing it is definitely speaking to is her first-time mom status. Although, she appears to be carrying low- and recently announced she’s having a girl. Just sayin’.
