This article will reveal true and interesting facts about pregnancy. You will be amazed by the following facts and it just goes to show you the unbelievable things the human body is capable of.
photo credit: molly_darling
#1: Milk production
Upon conception, your breasts get ready for milk production. This starts as early as week 13. Your nipples will undergo some changes, i.e. become larger and darker and the veins will be more obvious as more blood is pumped to the breast.
#2: Womb size
The woman’s womb is about the size of a small pear before conception. The womb will grow bigger and reach the bottom of the rib cage by the time of the due date which is 500 – 1000 times bigger.
#3: Placenta
Your placenta does a lot of things for the baby. Something new I discovered is that it also produces heat to keep your baby warm, about one degree warmer than the mother’s body.
#4: Girl wonder
If you happen to carry a baby girl, she already has about two million eggs inside of her at only 13 weeks. The number of eggs will drop to about one million over the next two trimesters.
#5: The baby’s eyes
The eyes will develop on the side of the baby’s head in the beginning. The eyes will move closer together from week 12. The baby can move the eyes from left to right by about week 20 and open them by week 22.
#6: The baby’s heart
The baby’s heart will beat twice as fast as yours. By week five, all four chambers are fully developed. The baby’s heart is capable of pumping as much as six gallons of blood per day by week 16.
#7: Fingerprints
Your baby’s fingerprints are in place by week 13. The fingernails only start to grow from week 12 and she may even scratch herself in the womb.
#8: Hiccups
Do you know that your baby may hiccup while still in the womb? I experienced this with all of my three pregnancies and it was amazing! Your baby starts to practice breathing, inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid by week 16. If some fluid gets into the windpipe, it causes the baby to hiccup.
#9: Natural heating
Your baby will develop a special kind of “brown” fat in the nape of her neck in the last weeks of your pregnancy. The cells are special for giving heat during the first few weeks after birth.
#10: The baby’s bones
In the beginning, your baby has supple cartilage which transforms into bones by week 17. However, the bones will remain flexible to prepare for her journey through the birth canal.