Pregnant women can enjoy hot baths and saunas without raising their temperature to levels that might harm their unborn child, a new review has suggested.

Current health advice states that women who are expecting should avoid heat stress because it risks taking their core temperature beyond 102F (39C.)

Old wives tales have also traditionally recommended gin and a hot bath to get rid of unwanted pregnancies while the NHS and The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists currently warns pregnant women to also avoid saunas and jacuzzis.

But the new review, which compiled the results of 12 studies involved 347 women, found that sitting in a sauna, exercising or enjoying a hot bath did not dangerously elevate temperature.

No woman exceeded the recommended core temperature limit of 102F (39℃) across all studies.

Researchers from the University of Sydney warn that the ban could prevent women from exercising when pregnant.