How a Baby Develops in the Womb

Pregnancy is an exciting and stressful time for a woman. Knowing how your baby is developing and changing in your womb can help you bond with the little one as well as help pass the weeks and months. Moms also must know what is harmful to a baby’s development.

Pregnancy is an exciting and stressful time for a woman. Knowing how your baby is developing and changing in your womb can help you bond with the little one as well as help pass the weeks and months. Moms also must know what is harmful to a baby’s development.

Significance

Knowing what’s going on with your growing baby is important as mom forms an attachment to the unknown little one in her belly. In the first trimester–when the brain and spinal cord are being developed, alongside the rudimentary form of all of your baby’s organs–it’s important to take certain dietary and supplementation precautions. Knowing what your baby needs based on his development will help you to better give your little one what he needs to develop normally.

Time Frame

In the first trimester, your baby will develop all of her rudimentary organs. Her spinal cord and brain are completed, and her eyes and ears are growing. Tiny limb buds will develop in this first trimester into legs and arms that look more human-like; her fingers and toes are beginning to form. The baby can move around inside your uterus. The second trimester brings more developmental milestones. Your baby’s heartbeat can be heard by ultrasound and will begin to drink amniotic fluid and pass it as urine. You will likely begin to feel your baby move in the beginning of the second trimester–first as butterfly-like movements and later as more rambunctious movements. He can hear loud sounds from outside your body; he’s also is grasping and sucking–sometimes even his thumb. The baby will begin to settle into a pattern of sleep and activity. His vital organs are maturing, but his lungs are not ready yet to survive outside of the uterus. The seventh through ninth months bring big changes for the baby and mom. The baby’s movements will begin to be more poking and prodding as the space lessens for the little one to do gymnastics. Her bone centers are hardening; your baby can also hear your voice as you speak and can tell the difference between dark and light. During this time, the baby concentrates on gaining weight. She is already fully developed and needs to make gains in size.

Considerations

Many tests are done during pregnancy to give your health care provider information about how your baby is developing. Growth rate can be determined, as well as a possibly more accurate due date. The baby’s heart can be evaluated, along with other major organs, and many developmental anomalies can be ruled out–such as spina bifida. Ultrasound testing can be done at any point during pregnancy. An ultrasound exam (ultrasound scan or sonogram) is done by bouncing very high-frequency sound waves off solid objects. Depending on how far along mom is with her pregnancy, a vaginal ultrasound may need to be done in the early weeks or mom may be asked to fill her bladder to lift the uterus closer to the abdominal wall. If an ultrasound is done in the latter part of pregnancy mom, will not need to fill her bladder. 3-D ultrasounds are also available. They provide a three-dimensional view of the baby in the womb, giving him a more lifelike presence and a better view of the outside structures of the baby’s body.

Warning

Knowing what’s good for your baby as he develops in your womb is as important as knowing what’s harmful. The March of Dimes reports that 10 percent of women in the United States smoke during pregnancy. Smoking during pregnancy is harmful to mom and the baby. In 2004, 11.9 percent of babies born to smokers in the United States were low-birth weight babies (meaning less than 5 1/2 pounds), while only 7.2 percent of babies born to non-smoking mothers were considered low-birth weight, according to the March of Dimes. Babies of smokers are also at a higher risk of preterm delivery. Both low-birth weight and preterm babies have increased risk of cerebral palsy, learning disabilities, mental retardation and even death.

Prevention/Solution

Although there are some genetic birth defects that we can’t avoid, a baby’s development is also dependent on the prenatal care that a mother receives. Regular prenatal visits to your health care provider, prenatal vitamin supplementation, a healthy diet of fruits, vegetables and whole grains, adequate rest and manageable stress are all contributors to the safe and healthy development of your baby. Folic acid is extremely important in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. A study published by The MRC Vitamin Study Group in 1991 found that supplementing your diet with folic acid in the first 12 weeks or pregnancy reduces the risk of having a baby with neural tube defects such as spina bifida by up to 70 percent. Most prenatal vitamins have adequate amounts of folic acid included in their preparation. Check with your health care provider to be sure the vitamin you are taking does.