A woman's diet around the time she conceives can influence whether she has a boy or a girl - and breakfast cereal seems to be one of the key factors.
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Experts said they had uncovered the first direct evidence that food intake is linked to a baby's gender.
Women who consume a large amount of calories when trying for a baby are more likely to give birth to a son, they said.
Those who ate around 2,200 calories a day were 1.5 times more likely to have a boy than those who ate less than 1,850 calories a day.
Eating breakfast cereals before and around the time of conception was also "strongly associated" with women producing sons, the researchers said.
Diets high in a number of nutrients, including potassium, calcium and vitamins C, E and B12, were also linked to male births.
The study was led by experts from the University of Exeter and the University of Oxford.
Lead author, Dr Fiona Mathews, from the University of Exeter, said: "I think if you are wanting to conceive a boy then the breakfast-cereal finding is the main thing that popped out.
"Women who had boys also had a 300mg higher daily intake of potassium so foods like bananas are good."
Dr Mathews said it did not seem to matter which food groups those consuming 2,200 calories a day relied on. ↓
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