Did the full moon bring on the royal baby?
Did Sunday night's full moon really send the Duchess of Cambridge into labour? Old wives tale? Coincidence or science?
The royal baby, the Prince of Cambridge was not just born on the hottest day of the year but also during a full moon which some believe may have prompted the Duchess of Cambridge to go into labour.
Some experts say that the moon has a gravitational pull on embryonic fluid around a baby in much the same way as it affects the tide.
Mervi Jokinen, of the Royal College of Midwives, told the MailOnline that colleagues often talk of how a full moon makes for a busy spate of deliveries.
While she acknowledged any evidence was purely anecdotal, she said: "Midwives usually do say “I’m on call. It’s a full moon. I’ll be busy tonight”."
She added: "There was a study about 20 years ago at a hospital near the Thames which is a tidal river, it showed that on the full moon they did have more births.
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"The idea is that because the baby is surrounded by water, the time of the full moon and the high tide causes the waters to break."
Some experts say because the human body is comprised of 80 per cent water, there is no reason to discount the suggestions. It is also thought menstrual cycles are similarly influenced.
Did Mother Nature speed up the royal delivery?
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