Traditional Practices Used by Women in the Preconception Period to Conceive and Determine the Sex of the Baby: An Investigation of Regional Differences in Turkey

Traditional beliefs and practices begin with the pre-pregnancy period and affect all family members, especially women. If cultural beliefs and traditional practices are not properly identified, some problems may arise in health service delivery. This study was conducted to determine the regional differences in traditional beliefs and practices that women use to conceive and determine the sex of the baby in the preconception period. The study was cross-sectional and descriptive and consisted of 695 women living in seven regions of Turkey between 15.11.2022-15.12.2022. The questionnaire consisted of a total of 51 questions about the socio-demographic and obstetric characteristics of the mothers and the methods used for conception and sex determination. A significant correlation was found between the use of any traditional method for conception and educational status, employment status, income status, years of marriage, number of pregnancies, number of children and number of miscarriages (p<0.05). A significant relationship was found between the use of any traditional method to determine gender and educational status, employment status, income status, years of marriage, number of pregnancies and number of children (p<0.05). The study showed that the region of residence influenced women\\\'s traditional method of conception and sex determination.