If a family decides to have a child, from the very first days they will be interested in the gender of the unborn baby. Moreover, today doctors present to the public several ways through which you can try not only to predict, but also to plan the gender of your child.
Now I would like to talk about one of them.
A little about blood groups
Everyone knows that there are four blood groups and two Rh factors. It is from what set of them the mother and father will have that you can try to calculate the gender of the unborn baby. To make it clearer, in this article we will take the mother as a basis, then go through all the options for the father’s blood groups.
- Mother's blood type 1
So, let's begin to figure out how to determine the sex of a child based on the blood types of the parents. If the father has the first 0 (I) or third B (III) group, the family will most likely have a girl, but if the second A (II) or fourth AB (IV) - a boy.
- Mother's blood type 2
We go further, finding out the sex of the child by the blood types of the parents. Everything is clear with mom, father comes into play. Here the situation will be opposite than in the previous case. According to doctors, men with groups 0 (I) and B (III) more often give birth to boys, and those with A (II) and AB (IV) - girls.
- Mom's third blood group
We further explain how to calculate the sex of a child based on the blood type of the parents. In this option, a girl will have to be born only in one case, namely, if the man’s blood belongs to the first group 0 (I), while in other options only boys will be born - groups A (II), B (III), AB (IV).
- Mother's blood type 4
Next, we determine the gender of the child based on the blood type. And in this situation, having a boy will be much more likely. So, if the father has the second blood group A (II), there will be a girl. If he has the first 0 (І)
, third B (III) or fourth AB (IV), according to preliminary data, the family must have a male child.
Thus, the summary table for determining the sex of the child looks like this:
| Father's blood type | ||||
| Mother's blood type | I | II | III | IV |
| I | girl | boy | girl | boy |
| II | boy | girl | boy | girl |
| III | girl | boy | boy | boy |
| IV | boy | girl | boy | boy |
Let us once again make a reservation that data on determining the sex of a child depending on the blood type of the parents can be considered as the most probable, but not mandatory values. Otherwise, in some families only boys would be born, and in others only girls, which does not happen in reality. It is much more accurate to determine the blood type of the unborn child. However, this is another topic.
Rh factor
If with blood groups everything is extremely clear and there can be nothing wrong with mixing, then with the Rh factor things are somewhat different. If the woman initially has Rh-positive blood and the father has Rh-negative blood, nothing unpleasant should happen. Situations that can cause danger are if the mother has a negative Rh factor, then a Rh conflict between mother and fetus may develop. The situation is considered especially dangerous if the unborn baby is Rh positive, as various immune complications may arise. An interesting fact is that finding out the sex of a child by the blood groups of the parents is only one side of the issue, but this can also be done by Rh factors. If both parents are positive, or both are negative, the baby will be a girl. In any other version - a boy.
Determining the sex of a child by Rh factor is also presumptive, even if it coincides with the previous method.
Blood renewal
When considering planning the gender of a child based on blood, you can come across information that will tell you how to determine the gender of the future baby based on its updates. To do this, it is worth knowing that in women such processes occur once every three years, in men – every four. However, there may be exceptions if the person has recently had surgery, received a blood transfusion, or was a donor. It will not be difficult for anyone to carry out the calculations. To do this, you just need to divide the woman’s age by three, and the number of complete years of the man – by four. Whoever has the smaller number of remainders will have the future baby of that gender. If a person had an unscheduled update for the reasons described above, this figure should be taken as a basis.
In reality, the sex of a child depends on the combination of male and female sex chromosomes at conception. The female egg carries the X chromosome, and the sperm carries X or Y. When two XX chromosomes are combined, a girl will be born, if XY is a boy. In addition to attempts to determine the sex of a child by blood, there are many others: by the date of birth of the mother and father, the date of conception (it is believed that if conception occurred 2 days before ovulation, there will be a girl, if on the day of ovulation, there will be a boy). The influence of diet, lifestyle and character of parents, time of year, etc. is assumed.
At the moment, only one thing can be definitely stated: f The actors that reliably influence this or that combination of chromosomes during fertilization of an egg are not known for certain to medical science.
To understand how a child’s blood type is inherited from his parents, the table, as well as minimal knowledge of the laws of genetics, will help future mothers and fathers. And then they won’t have to wonder why their blood characteristics differ from those of the baby.
What is blood type? What are they?
Blood type belongs to those characteristics that a person receives from his father and mother at conception. This is a constant indicator, you have to live with it all your life.
At the beginning of the last century, a classification of blood groups was compiled. The entire system is called AVO. Belonging to a specific group is determined by antigens. These are special structures located on the surface of red blood cells - erythrocytes. Researcher Karl Landsteiner divided these substances into 2 groups - A and B. If a person has neither antigen A nor B, then these cells are called 0. A little later, cells were discovered whose membranes contain both antigen A and B.
So, there are 4 groups:
- I (0) – there is neither antigen A nor B on the surface;
- II(A) – only antigen A is present;
- III(B) – there is only antigen B;
- IV(AB) – the combination is determined, that is, both antigen A and B.
Blood transfusion rules
This division is important in blood transfusions. The transfusion procedure began to be carried out by doctors a very long time ago, but they could not guarantee a positive result, since they did not understand what success depended on. During scientific research, it was noticed that when some blood groups combine, clots appear, the blood seems to stick together, but in other cases this does not happen.
Based on this, the following rules were identified:
- It is forbidden for a patient with blood group A to receive a blood transfusion of group B;
- a patient with blood group 4 (AB) can be given any blood;
- a person with blood type 0 will only need such blood. After all, if the body does not have antigen A or B, then when such blood is transfused, the body will not accept it; when mixed, a so-called agglutination reaction will occur, that is, red blood cells stick together. To avoid these sad consequences, it is better for parents to find out their blood type in advance, and for the child to determine it at birth.
When planning a baby, parents ask themselves the question of what blood type the child will have if, for example, they have 2 and 2. This question is natural, because the future pregnancy will depend on the possible group. Only genetic analysis can give an accurate result. But the laws of genetics will help calculate the possible options.
The liquid tissue that helps the body send nutrients from one place to another is blood. It consists of a set of some cells and other substances:
- plasma;
- cells;
- erythrocytes and leukocytes;
- platelets;
- gases;
- organic substances.
Blood carries a lot of important information about a person. That is why in case of illness it is always necessary to take a few drops of it for testing. It retains all the basic information about a person throughout his life. The two main classifications into which blood is divided are group and Rh factor.
First studies
For a long time, doctors in past centuries tried to understand why patients had different healing results when receiving blood transfusions. In most cases, the transfusion resulted in death. Karl Landsteiner began research in this area. The results of his work were published in 1901 in one of the medical journals.
During his experiments, Landsteiner noticed that some elements of the blood began to bind together. Thus, according to its properties, it was divided into 3 groups. A little later, group 4 was added to them, thanks to a scientist from the Czech Republic, Jan Jansky. Despite the importance of the discovery, it was not taken seriously in the scientific world. Therefore, a little later, other classifications appeared - blood groups were “rediscovered”. Because of this, there are now different designations, but the main ones remain AB0 and the Rh factor.
The decision to retain AB0 as the global designation was made at the meeting of the International Society of Blood Transfusion in 1937.
Karl Landsteiner's discovery radically changed the idea of blood. Thanks to his discovery, the scientist received the Nobel Prize in 1930. Blood grouping has significantly reduced the number of deaths during transfusions. In the scientific world, Landsteiner is called the founder of modern genetics.
What is the child's blood type?
If the parents have groups 2 and 2, then what kind of blood the child will have is not difficult to determine. Mendel's laws can be used specifically for this purpose.
The rules that Gregor Mendel created are used by all geneticists in the world. His theories became the basis for further research. It is based on Mendel's laws that one can predict the blood type of the unborn baby. The basic principles of these rules are:
- A child will completely lack A and B antigens if both of his parents have group 1. This means that the baby is 100% likely to receive group 1.
- If 1 and 2 or 1 and 3 are mixed, then the probability is 50% for each group.
- When one of the parents has group 4, then the child can have any group except group 1.
- If the parents have groups 2 and 3, then it is impossible to calculate the future blood type of the child.
When parents have the same blood group 2, then the child can have it: 1 - 25%, 2 - 75%. In this case, a precise answer can only be given after the baby is born.
Rh factor
Another important way to determine blood is the Rh factor. It was discovered by the same scientist Karl Landsteiner together with Alexander Wiener. The discovery was made in 1940, when much was known about it thanks to blood groups. For the first time, it was possible to identify the Rh factor from the blood of a macaque. Today, this type of division system is one of the most complex. Although the simplified version uses only two factors, positive and negative, in reality there are many more.
45 antigens can be detected on the surface of red cells. These elements are under the control of two genes that are linked on the chromosome. At its core, the Rh factor is a protein. If we use simplified concepts, if this protein is present, then the Rh factor will be positive, otherwise it will be negative.
In most cases, the Rh factor does not affect a person’s life in any way. The danger appears at the moment when positive and negative rhesus are mixed.
Most often, this process is observed during the conception of a child. The protein is passed genetically from parent to child. If the mother is Rh negative and the baby is positive, then pregnancy may be difficult. The woman’s body perceives the proteins as a foreign body and begins to reject the fetus, which can result in a miscarriage.
Today, doctors recommend taking the necessary tests even before pregnancy, especially for couples who are having problems conceiving. Possible reasons for the lack of pregnancy are precisely the incompatibility of Rh factors. Then the doctor can prescribe special therapy for the woman to prepare the body.
If pregnancy has already occurred, then doctors also recommend a blood test. Laboratory tests will help not only identify possible mutations in the child’s cells and genetic diseases, but will also determine the presence or absence of Rh proteins.
What else is inherited?
What blood type will the child have if both parents have 2, it has now become clear. Blood is passed on genetically, but other traits of the unborn child can also be passed on along with it. Based on Mendel's laws, parents can calculate in advance what color the baby's eyes will be and what kind of hair he will have. There are dominant and recessive traits that affect children.
With brown-eyed parents, in 98% of cases the child will have eyes of the same color. It is this simple example that shows the work of Mendel's law. Based on his research and statistics, scientists have found that the number of natural blondes or redheads is constantly decreasing. This happens because these genes are recessive, and dark hair is dominant.
It has been proven that poor vision, most often myopia, can be transmitted through genes. Diseases such as allergies, schizophrenia and others can also be transmitted through blood.
But good hearing means weak genes, so you shouldn’t expect special talents from your child, even if both parents have them. Also, genes and blood type do not affect a child’s IQ in any way. This factor is acquired rather than congenital.
Today's medicine allows you to get your own genetic passport. Based on the tests performed, doctors determine which diseases a person may be susceptible to due to predisposition. Such studies make it possible to prevent the disease in time. You won’t be able to get such a passport in a regular hospital. Analyzes are carried out only by special laboratories that specialize in DNA
During the period of pregnancy, parents are already interested in learning as much as possible about the future baby. It is, of course, impossible to determine the eye color or character of an unborn baby. However, if you turn to the laws of genetics, you can quickly calculate some characteristics - what blood type the child will have and his future Rh factor.
These indicators are directly dependent on the properties of the blood of the mother and father and, having familiarized themselves with the ABO blood distribution system, according to which all blood is divided into 4 groups, mom and dad can easily understand the processes of inheritance. Tables compiled based on a study of the probabilities of borrowing will also help you calculate the blood type and Rh factor of the unborn child.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, scientists discovered four blood groups with individual antigenic characteristics of red blood cells. In two blood categories, antigens A and B were present, and in the third they were not present at all. A little later, research revealed another blood group with the presence of antigens A and B at the same time. This is how the system of dividing blood into ABO groups was born, where:
- 1 (O) – blood without antigens A and B;
- 2 (A) – blood with the presence of antigen A;
- 3 (B) – blood with the presence of antigen B;
- 4 (AB) – blood with A and B antigens.
With the advent of the ABO system, geneticists have proven that the principles of forming a child’s blood group are identical in nature and this pattern made it possible to formulate some laws of genetics on the borrowing of blood.
In humans, inheritance of blood type occurs from parents to child, through the transmission of genes informed about the content of antigens A, B and AB in the red blood cells of the mother and father.The Rh factor, like the blood group, is determined by the presence of a protein (antigen) on the surface of human red blood cells. When this protein is present in red blood cells, the person's blood is Rh positive. However, there may be no protein, then the blood takes on a negative value. The ratio of Rh factors in the blood of positive and negative populations is 85% to 15%, respectively.
The Rh factor is inherited according to the predominant dominant trait. If the parents are not carriers of the Rh factor antigen, then the child will inherit negative blood. If one parent is Rh positive and the other is not, then the baby has a 50% chance of being a carrier of the antigen. In the case when the mother and father are Rh-positive, the child’s blood will also become positive in 75% of cases, however, there is a possibility that the child will receive the gene from the closest blood relative with negative blood. The table for borrowing the Rh factor according to the blood group of the parents is as follows:
| Rh mothers | Father's Rh | Rh child |
| + | + | + (75%), – (25%) |
| + | — | + (50%), – (50%) |
| — | + | + (50 %), – (50%) |
| — | — | – (100%) |
Determining the blood type of a child based on the blood type of the parents
Blood type is passed on to children from parents according to their general genotype:
- When the mother and father are not carriers of antigens A and B, the child will have blood type 1 (O).
- It is easy to calculate the blood type of a child when mom and dad have 1 (O) and 2 (A) blood groups, since only antigen A or its absence can be transmitted. With the first and third blood groups, the situation will be similar - children will inherit either group 3 (B) or group 1 (O).
- If both parents are carriers of the rare group 4 (AB), it will be possible to find out the blood identity of the children only after a laboratory analysis at birth, since it can be either 2 (A), 3 (B) or 4 (AB).
- It is also not easy to find out the characteristics of a child’s blood when mom and dad have 2 (A) and 3 (B) antigens, since the baby can have each of the four blood groups.
What blood type a baby should have at birth can be determined by a table showing the inheritance of blood:
| Father | Mother | Child |
| 1 (O) | 1 (O) | 1 (O) – 100% |
| 1 (O) | 2 (A) | 1 (O) – 50% or 2 (A) – 50% |
| 1 (O) | 3 (B) | 1 (O) – 50% or 3 (B) – 50% |
| 1 (O) | 4 (AB) | 2 (A) – 50% or 3 (B) – 50% |
| 2 (A) | 1 (O) | 1 (O) – 50% or 2 (A) – 50% |
| 2 (A) | 2 (A) | 1 (O) – 25% or 2 (A) – 75% |
| 2 (A) | 3 (B) | |
| 2 (A) | 4 (AB) | 2 (A) – 50% or 3 (B) – 25% or 4 (AB) – 25% |
| 3 (B) | 1 (O) | 1 (O) – 50% or 3 (B) – 50% |
| 3 (B) | 2 (A) | 1 (O) – 25% or 2 (A) – 25% or 3 (B) – 25% or 4 (AB) – 25% |
| 3 (B) | 3 (B) | 1 (O) – 25% or 3 (B) – 75% |
| 3 (B) | 4 (AB) | |
| 4 (AB) | 1 (O) | 2 (A) – 50% or 3 (B) – 50% |
| 4 (AB) | 2 (A) | 2 (A) – 50% or 3 (B) – 25% or 4 (AB) – 25% |
| 4 (AB) | 3 (B) | 2 (A) – 25% or 3 (B) – 50% or 4 (AB) – 25% |
| 4 (AB) | 4 (AB) | 2 (A) – 25% or 3 (B) – 25% or 4 (AB) – 50% |
Using the inheritance table, it is possible to predict a child’s blood type for sure only in one case, when there was a combination of 1(O) blood groups of the mother and father. In other combinations, you can only find out the probability of what the child’s blood type may be in the future. Therefore, exactly whose blood affiliation the baby inherits will become clear after his birth.
Gender of the child by blood type
There is an opinion that the sex of a child can be determined without the help of an ultrasound, based on the blood group of the mother and father. Special combinations of groups provide certain guarantees that a boy or girl will be born:
However, this method of determining the sex of a child has given rise to many doubts, since the same couple, according to the method, can only have girls or boys during their lives, and having children of different sexes is impossible.
If we rely on science and genetics, the probability of having a child of one sex or another is absolutely dependent on the chromosome set of the sperm that fertilized the egg. And the blood type of the parents, in this case, has nothing to do with this.
At birth, a child inherits from one of the parents. Knowing the group affiliation and the Rh factor, you can determine which group and Rh factor the unborn baby will have. Young parents should know in what cases a Rhesus conflict situation occurs and what consequences this can lead to.
Every person inherits a certain blood type at birth. Antigens are present in the formed elements and blood plasma; thanks to this immunogenetic trait, 4 blood groups are determined.
There are several combinations or blood groups in the ABO system:
- I (0). The blood does not contain antigens, but anti-A and anti-B antibodies are present.
- II (A). Antigen A and antibodies to agglutinogen B are present.
- III (B). Contains antigen B and antibodies to agglutinogen A.
- IV (AB). Antibodies are absent, but both A and B antigens are present.
Blood separation is based on the agglutination reaction. Inheritance of blood type occurs according to the laws of genetics. The maternal and paternal chromosomes provide a certain set of genes, as a result of which inheritance is determined by genes - A, B, 0.
On the surface there is an antigen or protein, which is called. If this protein is present in the blood, a positive Rh is determined, and if it is absent, a negative Rh is determined. Most people are Rh positive and only 15% are Rh negative.
Inheritance of the Rh factor occurs according to a dominant trait.
If both parents do not have the antigen in their blood, the child will be Rh negative. If one of the parents has a positive Rh factor and the other is negative, then the child may be a carrier of the antigen.
If both parents are Rh positive, the baby is more likely to be Rh positive. However, there are cases when a child inherits a negative group, i.e. another gene may pass to him from a blood relative.
Blood type of parents and children
The transfer of the blood type to the child is carried out according to the common genotype of the parents. The famous geneticist Gregor Mendel formulated the laws by which a child’s blood type is inherited back in the 19th century.
Table of probability of a child's blood type
To find out who the future parents are expecting - a boy or a girl, there is a certain combination. However, it does not give exact guarantees of the birth of a girl or a boy.
The girl will be with her parents if the mother has blood group I, and the father is a carrier of group I or II. A woman with group III and a man with group I can also expect a girl.
A boy will be born if the mother has blood type I, and the father is a carrier of group II or IV. With a greater degree of probability, you can expect a boy with a combination of maternal group III and any paternal blood group.
According to this method, throughout the life of a married couple, they can only have either girls or boys.
However, according to the laws of genetics, the probability of having a boy or a girl depends on the chromosome set of the sperm that fertilized the egg.
Causes and consequences of Rh conflict
Rh negative does not affect a person in any way. But pregnant women with negative Rhesus need special attention.
When planning a pregnancy, future parents must know their Rh factor. With negative Rh in the mother and positive in the father, it may occur. This situation can only arise when the baby has inherited the father's Rh. Compatibility between mother and child in this case is poor. Through the placental barrier, the baby's Rh factor reaches the mother and protective factors are produced in her body. Against this background, the mother’s body perceives the fetus as something foreign.
If the Rh conflict situation is severe, this can provoke intrauterine fetal death or lead to miscarriage.
The mother's antibodies, penetrating the placenta, destroy the child. As a result, a large amount is present in the blood, which turns the skin yellow. and accelerate the production of red blood cells, which are continuously destroyed. At the same time, these organs increase in size. They fail to cope with the task, and as a result, anemia develops against the background of a low red blood cell count.
In addition, a Rh conflict situation can lead to disruption of brain activity, speech and hearing functions.
At birth, in more severe cases, the newborn is given a blood transfusion and the first negative group is administered. After this, resuscitation measures are carried out. Such an event must be held within 36 hours of the birth.Useful video - Blood groups and Rh factor:
To avoid such problems, both partners should be tested for their group and Rh factor beforehand. Women who are Rh negative can also have children, but should have their blood tested regularly for antibodies. Based on their level, the doctor can guess what kind of Rh the child has and whether a Rh conflict situation arises.
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