How a baby develops during pregnancy

Let’s take a scientific virtual look at how Your Child grows inside your womb. So you know what to look for during each stage of your pregnancy.

Read the full story below

1st Trimester
If you become pregnant, your womb doesn’t shed its lining as it usually does at the end of the menstrual cycle. As a result, your periods temporarily stop. This is because the egg has been fertilized by a sperm and you are in the early weeks of pregnancy.

The fertilized egg now starts its division from a single cell and after around a week, the cells travel from the ovaries to the uterus, where they undergo the great divide, splitting into two. One half forms the placenta, while the other half becomes your baby.

By week four, your baby is growing at a rate of 1 million cells per second. The spinal cord, heart, and brain are now clearly visible. By week 6 your baby’s heart starts beating. 

By week 9, your baby looks like a small human being and we can see tiny hands, fingers, and other bones. The embryo has developed into what is called a fetus and can now hear your baby’s heartbeat around twice the rate as yours.

At the end of the trimester, the risk of losing your baby has dropped to virtually 0%! 

2nd trimester
At the beginning of the second trimester, at week 14, your baby is around the size of a lemon. The sex organs develop and you can now see if it’s a boy or a girl on an ultrasound scan.

The baby swallows amniotic fluid and passes it out through its tiny digestive system. The kidneys start to work too and start passing some small amounts of urine. The little face now shows a yawn, a smile, or how the limps suck the tiny thumb.

The ears also continue to develop and your baby now hears your voice and your heartbeat. The baby moves the arms or kicks.

At the end of the second trimester, the eyelids begin to part and the eyes open. With intensive care, your baby can now already survive if born prematurely.

3rd trimester
At week 28, the beginning of the third trimester, your baby is around the size of a large eggplant. The baby grows fingernails, and the first milk teeth start growing under the gums.

The lungs are almost fully formed and the baby is practicing breathing by inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid, in preparation for birth. The baby now spends almost all the time asleep. The brain and nervous system are now almost fully finished and to get ready for the outside world, the fat stores increase. 

If you laugh or drink something cold, the baby may respond by bouncing up and down or kicking against the belly wall. 

At the end of your pregnancy, your baby changes position so it is ready for birth. 

Seconds after the baby is born, the umbilical cord will be cut and the little one starts breathing. Then a new baby is born, and so is a new mother. Every woman, every pregnancy, and every child are different.