The advice on many aspects of pregnancy can be confusing and even contradictory. There are conflicting opinions, for example, on whether pregnant women should give up alcohol completely, and what kind of foods they can eat.

When the science journalist Linda Geddes became pregnant, she decided to check up on much of what she was told.

Speaking to the Today programme, she said: "There were all sorts of things I discovered that were fairly absurd - from the fairly harmless stuff like the shape of your bump predicting your baby's gender, to some more serious things.

"I was told by antenatal teachers during pregnancy... if I have an epidural, I'm more likely to have a caesarean section."

She said that this is not the case.

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