It’s no secret that throwing a gender reveal party has become a common rite of passage for expectant parents in 2019.

While there are still a few of us who would prefer to keep it a surprise right up until birth, thanks to ultrasound technology (and doctors who are willing to play along) more and more of us are opting to celebrate the reveal of our baby’s gender with balloons, pink or blue centred cakes, and even custom nail art.

A quick search on Instagram reveals the true popularity of the trend - at 1,075,567 posts and counting, the hashtag #genderreveal is populated by photos of happy couples surrounded by pink or blue decorations.

But with growing awareness over the non-binary nature of gender, has anyone stopped to wonder why we continue to celebrate such an arbitrary aspect of a baby’s identity - especially before they’ve even been born?

Here’s why you should reconsider throwing a gender reveal party, according to the trend’s inventor