Fact or Royal Fiction: If Kate Middleton is overdue could U.S. menu items induce labor?

In the OutFront newsroom, we are counting down the seconds until the Prince or Princess of Cambridge is born. Some of us are worried about the unthinkable: the Duchess of Cambridge could be overdue.

But did you know, there is a link between some favorite American dishes and their ability to induce labor? Several restaurants across the country feature menu items that are rumored to help overdue moms pop. Kate Middleton, you too could have an eggplant baby.

While there’s little scientific evidence that these dishes really work, Kate could follow the lead of expectant moms across the pond and attempt to overnight these meals to Kensington Palace or 'repli-kate' them in her very own royal kitchen.

Scalini’s Restaurant "Baby Wall"

Robert Bogino who runs Scalini’s Restaurant in Smyrna, Georgia tells OutFront that their famous eggplant parmigiana "…was invented by my grandfather and father…[in] around 1976… My mother first had it when she was pregnant with me, and I became the first ‘Scalini’s Baby.’ We opened Scalini's in 1980 [and] we never advertised the labor inducing dish. It all picked up from word of mouth.”

Although Scalini’s has not kept accurate records regarding how many expectant mothers have given birth after eating the famous meal, according to Bogino, “We are definitely in the 1000s for eggplant babies…[and] some people travel from out of town to get the dish and may not let us know it worked for years after the fact.”

In the restaurant there’s actually a ‘baby wall’ with hundreds of photos of Scalini’s babies.

About 2200 miles away, in Studio City, California, is Caioti Café where Kate could have some Maternity Salad dressing overnighted to her.  (She could have stocked up on the dressing when she was visiting Southern California in 2011. Guess you can't plan for everything.)

According to the Maternity Salad website, “Since 1993, Caioti has been attracting… [women] eager to sample a salad made world famous by claims of the labor-inducing properties of it's salad dressing… The recipe [is] made with: pure olive oil, balsamic vinegar, sun-dried tomatoes, spices, herbs, seasonings and love.”

If Kate has a craving for pizza, two pregnancy pies in California and Salt Lake City Utah are equally sought-after. Skipolini’s pizza is know for a ‘prego pizza’ and according to their site:

“In the spring of 1981, a woman desperate to give birth after a trying pregnancy, wandered into Skipolini's Pizza in downtown Clayton, [California]. Jokingly, the woman demanded that the manager give her a pizza that would make her have the baby soon. Seeing her desperation, the manager concocted a pizza with just about every known topping in the restaurant. The masterpiece had thirteen different toppings including extra onions and extra garlic…[and] was loaded with fresh vegetables and six types of meat…The woman left the restaurant after eating the ‘Prego’ pizza and went into labor that same evening…After years of success, the ‘Prego’ pizza has been growing in popularity [and] has been recommended by doctors and OBGYN's everywhere.”

At Café Trio in Salt Lake City, Utah, the chicken, roasted garlic, caramelized onions, mushrooms and fontina cheese ‘pregnancy pizza’ is also rumored to induce labor. According to a source at the restaurant, “even doctors around here suggest it to people.”

But hold your (royal) horses.

Before Kate - and all of you other mothers-to-be - go out in search of labor-inducing foods, we had to find out whether there was any truth to these super foods. Could they just be part of an old wives’ tale?

Registered Dietitian and Nutritionist, ‘Diet Diva’ Tara Gidus tells OutFront "…There are not really foods that really do ‘induce labor.’ This is just urban legend. No evidence points to certain foods inducing labor. The foods [above] sound DELICIOUS, but there is really nothing in the ingredients that would cause a baby to be delivered."