Can high temperatures influence the sex of your baby?

We know by now that extreme heat can impact pregnancies in many ways. And with climate change contributing to extreme heat in India – and with parts of the country already reeling under scorching heat – this has become a significant health concern. But what do we know about temperature and its link with sex ratio at birth? Can exposure to intense heat during pregnancy influence whether you have a boy or a girl? A recent research paper seems to suggest it might – it shows that high temperatures in the months before birth, could be linked with fewer male births. Guest: Jasmin Abdel Ghany, Nuffield Postdoctoral Prize Research Fellow in Sociology, Nuffield College, Oxford and lead author of the research paper Host: Zubeda Hamid Producer: Sharmada Venkatasubramanian Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Can high temperatures influence the sex of your baby? is an episode from In Focus by The Hindu by The Hindu.

This episode is 22:01 long.

This episode was published on May 4, 2026.

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