pink baby clothesThinking pink, dreaming pink, want a baby girl so badly you will do almost anything to get one? Then you may want to go on a diet.

A new study out of the Netherlands found that women who ate a diet high in magnesium and calcium (think beans and hard cheese) and low in sodium and potassium (no bacon, potatoes, meats, or baked goods) were much more likely to give birth to a girl.

As in 80 percent of the women who followed such a diet had girls!

Researchers also said timing matters. Baby making activities should happen regularly, but not on the days "immediately before or after ovulation."

And of course, if it's blue that's true to your heart's desire, then do the opposite -- which frankly sounds like much more fun as far as the diet goes.

The study looked at 172 women who wanted girls and previously had boys. When they followed this protocol, the overwhelming majority of them got their little princesses.

Interesting, and I've heard similar advice before, but never with such a high rate of success.

Other less-proven methods for trying to get a girl that float around include: Have the woman initiate sex, have sex during a full moon, and to make sure the woman reaches orgasm first. Of course, there are also some high-tech methods to try and pick your gender too, which I personally find creepy.

I never tried any of them. While I thought I wanted all boys, I didn't do anything to purposefully get one -- mostly because I thought they were a bunch of myths.

And I'm glad I didn't because apparently some of them -- like this one -- work, and because I couldn't be more thrilled to have my darling daughter.

Did you do anything to try for a baby of a specific gender?


Image via [foxymoron]/Flickr