Preventing Preterm Birth – Bed Rest

Your Baby Weeks 22 to 27 At 25 weeks, your baby is 11 to 14 inches long and weighs 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 pounds. His skin is red, wrinkled, and covered with a protective coating. Your baby can smell, taste, see light, and hear your heart beating. His face and hands look much like they will look at full-term. After 25 weeks he will begin opening … Read more

Growing a Healthy Baby

Your Baby Weeks 27 to 31 Your baby’s weight has almost doubled over the past month.  She has grown about 3 inches longer, and weighs nearly 3 pounds.  The hair on her head is beginning to grow longer.  Any nutrients she doesn’t use for energy or growth will be stored as fat under her skin.  Her body is becoming plump and round … Read more

Activity Level Checklist

Your Baby Weeks 18 to 22 At the end of 5 months, your baby is 9 inches long and weighs one pound. Her skin is very wrinkled because she has stored very little fat to fill out her body and smooth out her skin. Her eyelids and eyebrows are well developed, but her eyes are still closed. A cheesy coating, called vernix, will begin forming to protect her … Read more

The Effects of Physical Activity on Preterm Birth

Your Baby Weeks 13 to 18 Your baby is about 6 1/2 inches long and weighs about 8 ounces. He has a strong heart beat and active muscles. His skin is covered with soft fine hair. His fingertips have fingerprints and fingernails and he can grasp with his hands. The bones start to harden and can be seen with an x-ray. All of his joints can move. … Read more

The Effects of Stress on Preterm Birth

Your Baby Weeks 9 to 13 At 12 weeks your baby is about 4 inches long and weighs less than 1 ounce. Her features are becoming more clearly defined. Her fingers and toes are fully formed and nail beds are forming. Some of her organs are actually working. Her bones are forming so she needs plenty of calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin D. She has all 20 of her baby … Read more

The Importance of Preventing Preterm Birth

Your Baby Weeks 3 to 5 In your third week of pregnancy, your baby is one week old. Your baby’s gender was determined even before the embryo attached itself to the lining of your uterus or womb. A “bag of waters” forms around your baby and begins to fill with fluid which will protect her … Read more

Risk Factors for Preterm Birth

Your Baby Weeks 5 to 9 Your baby is about 1 to 2 inches long. All major organs are present. Although still developing, his eyelids and tongue have formed, as well as his ears and face. His arms and legs look like “flippers” with short, stubby buds that become hands and feet with rays that become fingers and toes. His knees and ankles begin forming. The spinal cord … Read more

Taking Part in Prenatal Care

Congratulations! You’re going to have a baby! Like most expectant mothers, you may be having mixed feelings. You may feel both excited and afraid. This is especially true if you have risk factors for having a preterm (premature) baby. It may also be true if you have no risk factors but are having symptoms of preterm labor or more than a … Read more

Preventing Preterm Birth

So you can follow your baby’s growth, we’ll tell you the average weight and length for the given week in his development. In this article: ~ Lengths are measured from crown to rump (sitting height) until full term. Crown to heel measurements are used at full-term. Measurements for “weeks a to b” are averages. ~ Pregnancy begins the first day of your last period. ~ “Weeks” are … Read more

Every Day Counts

Your Baby Weeks 36 to 40 Your womb is getting tight around your baby now that she is plump. You may be able to see a foot or her buttocks on your abdomen. A full-term baby girl weighs about 7 pounds and is about 16 inches long. A baby boy weighs about 7 1/2 pounds … Read more