>I assume that, as a member of a male-dominated culture that
>still secretly assumes women to be inferior (i.e., contemporary American
>culture — why else the millions of PMS jokes?), you’re asking for
>ways to assure that the child is a boy?

You assumptions and proposed solution are WAY off base.  When my wife and
I decided to have children we wanted a girl first (just because…).  
Others have valid medical reasons (sex linked genetic diseases) for wanting
one gender or the other.

Here is a letter we received in response to a query to a Seattle Hospital
gender determination.  Note the postmark date.  Things most likely have
changed since this was written.

——-
Postmark date: May 14, 1985

Reproductive Genetics
Division of Perinatal Medicine
The Swedish Hospital Medical Center
747 Summit Avenue
Seattle, Washington 98104

        SPERM SELECTION FOR PRECONCEPTUAL SELECTION OF A FEMALE CHILD

Every semen specimen contains millions of sperm.  Approximately 50 percent
of the sperm will carry an X-chromosome, while the remaing 50 percent
carries a Y-chromosome.  A woman’s egg fertilized by an X-bearing sperm result
in mail development.  Normally, there is about an even chance of producing
a male or female child.

For couples who prefer a femal child, the Swedish Hospital Medical Center
offers a sperm-selection procedure designed to increase the possibility of
their having a girl.  This is done by separating from the semen a sub-
population of X-bearing sperm, for artificial insemination.  The percentage
of X-bearing sperm in any treated sample will vary from one man to another
(individually specific), and has ranged from 50% to 95% with an average of
82%.  Some men’s sperm (about 10%) can not be separated to enrich the
concentration of X-sperm significantly using this procedure.  For this
reason, we require the mail to have a preliminary separation analysis or
"dry run", performed prior to the time of insemination.  If the percent
X-bearing sperm is not increased by the prcedure to >= 64% another "dry run"
will be performed at another time without charge.

Although X-enriched sperm fractions increase the probability that the
resulting offspring will be female, naturally we cannot guarantee the sex
of a child, or indeed, even that a pregnancy will occur.  This method should
benefit possible carriers of any of the more than 200 X-linked diseases.
Although any patient referred by her physician will be accepted into the
program.

The sperm selection procedure involves filling a glass column with a chemically
inert suspension of Dextran particles.  Semen is placed at the top of this
colum, and the sperm is permitted to filter down throughout the column, where
it is collected in a series of test tubes.  A biologist examies a few sperm
from each tube to determine which tubes contain the highest percentage of
X-bearing sperm.  A sample from the tubes contain the highest percentage
of X-bearing sperm will be used for the artificial insemination by the woman’s
physician.

A woman’s physician will monitor her menstrual cycle in order to determine
the time of ovulation and therefore, the most appropriate time for insemi-
nation.  Depending on the individual woman, this may be done in a variety
of ways and the particular procedure is determined by the woman’s physician.
During a cycle in which sex selection is to be done, a couple will be
asked to refrain from unprotected intercourse on days 7 through 19 so as
to avoid accidental naturally occurring fertilization.

If a woman does not have a physician to monitor her ovulatory cycle and to
perform the insemination, our laboratory can refer her to a Swedish
affiliated doctor capable of doing this work.  If a patient lives more than
three or four hours travel time from the Seattle area, the ovulatory cycle
can be monitored by her own physician, until two or three days before
ovulation is anticipated.  The couple should then come to Seattle with the
wife’s ovulation records, and would then be referred to one of the Swedish
Hospital affiliated physicians for completion of the treatment.
The husband, however, must come to Seattle prior to ovulation, in order that
a preliminary separation, or "dry run" be performed on his semen.

Prior to beginning an insemination cycle, the couple should call (206)
386-2483 for an appointment with the patient coordinator.  At that time,
the separation procedure will be carefully explained and the couple can
sign consent forms if they choose to proceed.  The $275.00 fee per cycle
includes pretesting the semen specimen, and preparation of the X-bearing
sperm-enriched specimen for insemination.

For an appointment, either the referring physician’s office or patient may
call (206) 386-2483.
————-

–
uunet!proto!joe
j…@proto.com

> Couldn’t come with a better Subject line; sorry.

> Sometime ago someone posted a question how a gender of a baby can
> be influenced at the time of conception; i.e., ways to increase
> chances of having a boy or a girl.
> I didn’t see any responses on the net. Please post you advice, if you
> have any.

I assume that, as a member of a male-dominated culture that
still secretly assumes women to be inferior (i.e., contemporary American
culture — why else the millions of PMS jokes?), you’re asking for
ways to assure that the child is a boy?

Hmph. Medical testing exists to detirmine the gender of the fetus early in
the pregnancy, right? So just have the li’l lady run down to the hospital
to abort the thing if it has the exasperating gall to turn out to be
female, and only allow male children to be brought to term.

Barbaric, you say? Why? It fulfills your purpose, doesn’t it?

–
Eric Lee Green   (318) 984-1820  P.O. Box 92191  Lafayette, LA 70509
e…@elgamy.RAIDERNET.COM               uunet!mjbtn!raider!elgamy!elg

>Sometime ago someone posted a question how a gender of a baby can
>be influenced at the time of conception; i.e., ways to increase
>chances of having a boy or a girl.
>I didn’t see any responses on the net. Please post you advice, if you
>have any.

All right.  You asked for it: take the sex the Good Lord gives you.
Yes, you can use high tech to choose your baby’s sex, but if we
helped people do this, there would be too many male infants.
Nature knows best.
—
—————————————————————————-
Gordon Banks  N3JXP        | "It ain’t what you don’t know.
g…@cadre.dsl.pitt.edu     |  It’s what you know that ain’t so"
—————————————————————————-

This was briefly mentioned on Lifetime Medical Television a few
months ago.  The physicians on the show said there was some
remarkable anecdotal evidence and actual trials were being pushed
for.  This physicians’ directed cable channel is not in the habit
of foisting anecdotal reports as dogma, so this cautious mention tends
to be rather pursuasive.

>I am trying to find wher and by what name I can find the drug Buscopax.
>That is what it is known as in Latin America.  It is used for treating
>nervous bowl problems.
>thanx
>–
>Reply doesn’t work, pick an address from my .sig
>****************************************************************************
>*    Randi Pollard          e-mail to:  sporty!ra…@ursa-major.spdcc.com  *
>*                                  or   ra…@sporty.uucp                  *
>*    Data Phone….614-863-0374         Voice Phone….614-863-4801        *
>****************************************************************************

I do not know whether it is approved in the US but if it is it should
be as BUSCOPAN or SCOPEX. It will however be found by any pharmacist
under Hyoscine-N-butylbromide in the Martindale (book). It is more
used for spastic (painful) conditions of the bowel, gall bladder,
menstruation pain and the like.

regards, el
—
Dr. Eberhard W. Lisse    \          /                  (s…@hippo.ru.ac.ZA)
Katatura State Hospital   \        |     (e…@lisse.NA works for small files)
Private Bag 13215          \ *    / (e…@orc.dfv.rwth-aachen.DE in September)
Windhoek, Namibia           ;____/      (no FTP yet. [This is Africa -O])

In New Zealand, there’s a drug on the market under the trade name
Buscopan, which is used for what you describe.  Its generic name is
hyoscine N-butylbromide.  It is poorly absorbed and its action is brief.

–
Gerry Macridis, PO Box 3929, Wellington, New Zealand
Phone +64 4 899444  Mail: xa…@tornado.welly.gen.nz

Bowel.

It’s just an atropine-like drug used as an antispasmodic.
I don’t think it is sold in the US, but there are only
about 20,000 "me-too" drugs to choose from in its place.
Your doctor can recommend such a drug (if it’s even deemed
worthwhile–I seem to remember reading that anticholinergic
drugs really aren’t very effective in treating irritable
bowel syndrome, though they make fairly safe placebos.)

–
Steve Dyer
d…@ursa-major.spdcc.com aka {ima,harvard,rayssd,linus,m2c}!spdcc!dyer
d…@arktouros.mit.edu

My father has exactly this same property–inability to smell skunk.

Broccoli and asparagus are fine, raw asparagus is great.  I find
brussels sprouts repellent.  Nutrasweet tastes fine.

Is there any place to find out about common olfactory deficits and
what-goes-with-what?  Seems like an interesting idea, and maybe a good
way to plan menus or cook&design fancy foods.

                Thanks,
                Craig

A fourth: I like broccoli, asparagus, *and* sprouts, but can’t stomach
aspartame (nor saccharin, either – bring back the cyclamates!).  I didn’t
realise that it tasted like horribly old tennis balls, though: what strange
dietary habits some of we netters have.  Are many of us pregnant, or
what?

                                                        Kay
—
6′2", dark short hair, blue eyes, bisexual and horny as ….
Kay Dekker, Dept of Industrial Design, Coventry Poly, Coventry UK
37 Old Winnings Road, Keresley Village, Coventry   |B0 f- t+ g++ k++! s+ e r p!
Phone: +44 203 838668 (work) +44 203 337865 (home) |

>>I also like broccoli, but I think nutrasweet tastes of old tennis balls.
>>Just another data point.

>Me too. The stuff makes me gag, *horribly* old tennis balls is right.
>Poisonously undrinkable. But I like broccoli and asparagus.

You can add a third to this list.  I too like broccoli and asparagus but
can’t seem to take nutrasweet.  It gives me headaches, turns my stomach,
and tastes terrible.  Perhaps it’s not broccoli but brussel sprouts, can’t
stand them, yuk .  

Joan