seems silly to me

So, i was reading a baby-reaing book last night (really don't remember which one, i've had a few lent to me that sit in a pile by my bed, and i just grabbed one last night), and one of the "helpful hints" seemed a bit odd at the time, but now seems almost ridiculous.

They were talking about calming a fussy baby, and said that when standing & rocking them you should rock front to back instead of side to side, as "that is the motion the baby is most used to from being in the womb while you walked around during its gestation".

Yeah.

Wouldn't that require the baby to be either facing front or back in the womb all the time in order for the motion to be front-back? If the kid's position changed, the walking could very well be rocking it side to side. I know my kid has had its back along my side for a large part of this pregnancy, instead of face out or face in....

And for that matter, walking isn't really rocking anyways, it's more forward movement than equal back and forth movements. PLUS, with the way I am walking these days, there is a LOT of side to side movement in my walk (aka "waddling", as other late-pregnant women do)... AND walking is hardly the only movement that the kid experiences in utero - i have realized lately that often when i'm just standing i'll be rocking side to side on my legs, just keeping those hips moving...

So i just have to say "Psssssssssssht" to that "helpful hint". Maybe some kids prefer that movement in rocking over side to side, but i would hardly attribute it to movements felt in utero.