Honey, barley, beer, dates, toads, rabbit ears, rats and mice: No, it's not a list of ingredients for a witches brew but a short-list of the many items that have been employed through the ages to help women answer a burning question: Am I pregnant?

The ancients devised endless creative ways to diagnose pregnancy. More than a thousand years ago in Greece, honey water and vaginal suppositories made of onions were used. If the sweet water caused cramps and bloating, or if the suppository led to onion-tinged morning breath, a baby was on the way.

In ancient Egypt, a woman was given beer and dates until she vomited. The more vomiting, the thinking went, the more likely she was to be pregnant.

The Egyptians ultimately identified urine as the place to look to confirm a pregnancy. According to an ancient papyrus, a woman wondering whether she was pregnant would urinate on a pile of wheat and barley. If the barley sprouted after a few days, she was carrying a boy; if wheat sprouted, it meant a girl. No sprouts, no pregnancy.
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Psycho4Bud Reviewed by Psycho4Bud on . Birth of the pregnancy test Honey, barley, beer, dates, toads, rabbit ears, rats and mice: No, it's not a list of ingredients for a witches brew but a short-list of the many items that have been employed through the ages to help women answer a burning question: Am I pregnant? The ancients devised endless creative ways to diagnose pregnancy. More than a thousand years ago in Greece, honey water and vaginal suppositories made of onions were used. If the sweet water caused cramps and bloating, or if the suppository led Rating: 5