Can this 'magic' salad REALLY make you go into labour?

Yet it has been claimed that ‘The Salad’, made by Caioti’s Pizza Cafe in Studio City, California, is that very thing.

The Salad has become the stuff of myths, and the cafe’s owner, Carrie Ladou, says the legend of its inducing-labour-qualities brings up to 20 overdue mums-to-be per day into her eatery.

“28 years ago a pregnant lady came in and ate the salad and started having contractions,” she told Buzzfeed Bring Me.

“We have anywhere from 5 to 20 pregnant ladies a day come in and order The Salad. We have lots of tired looking men come in and get it to go.”

The Salad’s ingredients are as follows: romaine lettuce, walnuts, watercress, Gorgonzola cheese and a balsamic vinaigrette dressing (the exact contents of which remain a secret). It’s a pretty big portion, too.

Though it does seem that the dressing itself is really the key ingredient.

One even mum shared an image of the dressing bottle on Instagram, above, telling the cafe: "12 hours later...it worked! Sent a bottle to a friend in Arkansas last week and it worked for her too!"

Hmmm…

Now, we’re not ones to go around believing every so-called miracle or old wives’ tale, so we’re taking all this with a pinch of salt.

But it’s certainly a very interesting tale, especially since many women have actually induced labour and given birth after eating it - and there’s a plaque of names up in the cafe to prove it.

There are, of course, lots of home remedies and urban legends that are said to help overdue women make labour come quicker, including eating spicy food, embarking on a long walk, sipping on raspberry leaf tea or even having sex.

Have your say

Did you try anything to induce labour - and if so, what worked? Have you tried The Salad, or anything similar in the UK?

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Images: Instagram/Caioti’s Pizza

Read more:

• Ways to bring on labour
• What happens when you're overdue?
• Overdue? Try these tips...