Fetal development in pregnancy week 14:
As you begin your second trimester your little weighs in at a little over an ounce and at 3 ½ inches – about half of a banana. Impressive as the growth ha s been in the last few weeks, in the next four weeks your baby will grow to nearly a pound in weight! The body will finally start to catch up with the head and be more proportionate.
If you poke at your abdomen and the baby feels it, it will begin to root around as if looking to suckle. Their little face starts to resemble Mom and Dad as they continue to develop more normal looking facial features. Baby can hear sounds now and are able to feel pain. They have hair and eyebrows beginning to grow, as well as Lanugo – the fine hairs that cover the baby’s body and protect the skin. The baby now has unique fingerprints.
Inhaling and exhaling movements have begun and the torso is growing very quickly to make up the difference in body and head size. All nourishment is received through the placenta. The intestines continue their migration into the body from the umbilical cord.
At this point you may begin to feel “quickening”: a fluttering sensation in your abdomen. This is actually your baby moving around! It might be several weeks before you notice it, but some Mom’s notice this as early as 14 weeks.
Maternal Changes
Aside from your growing belly by pregnancy at 14 weeks you may find yourself a bit hungrier. Feel free to indulge in an occasional splurge but remember your caloric needs generally rise by only about 300 calories a day during pregnancy. As a welcome side effect you may find your energy improves around 14 weeks pregnant. Be sure to take advantage of your renewed energy and get outside for a walk each day if you can.
Most women can continue a normal albeit somewhat lighter exercise routine during pregnancy. You will find however that your body starts releasing a hormone called relaxin that makes your joints and ligaments much more flexible and hence prone to injury. Be sure you take things easy and allow yourself plenty of time to warm up and cool down to prevent injury. You should also work to keep your heart rate around 140 beats per minute. This will prevent you from becoming overly tired but ensure you get a good workout in.
Dad
As mom is feeling better, you may feel like she’s back to her old self again. Many parents slip into a lull during the first weeks of the second trimester. Her belly isn’t yet really showing a lot, so it may still be mostly your secret in public.
Maternity Clothes
Nothing feels worse that wearing ill-fitting clothing during your pregnancy. This is the case whether you are wearing tops or bottoms. One thing you must invest in during your pregnancy is one or more elegantly designed maternity shirts. Maternity Shirts from Destination Maternity, are crafted with pregnant mothers in mind. They offer the much needed extra space to allow your newborn baby to grow without looking overly bulky or out of style.
In fact, today’s Stylish Maternity shirts and blouses from Destination Maternity are much classier and stylish than some versions offered in the past. Not sure what to look for? Keep in mind your skin might be overly sensitive during your pregnancy. You may want to look for clothes that are made of a cotton/lycra blend so they are comfortable, breathe AND stretch a little as your growing belly expand
Pregnancy Health Tips
Along with your increasing girth comes the extra weight you gain during the second trimester. Some women are tempted to diet to reduce the amount of weight they gain. It is important that you never diet during pregnancy. You can however develop a healthy Pregnancy Diet at Baby Fit.com without losing weight. Your baby relies on you for vital nutrients during pregnancy. If you try to lose weight, you put the health of your baby at risk. Dieting during pregnancy can result in a malnourished, low birth weight baby and a more complicated delivery.
You should also avoid any medications for dieting such as diuretics, which can result in dehydration and can negatively impact your baby.
You can however make the decision to eat more healthy foods during pregnancy. Consider cutting out refined sugars and avoiding foods that are overly processed. These foods usually have more calories and provide less bang for your buck when it comes to nutrition. During your second trimester, you will start needing 300 to 500 more calories than you normally would in order to facilitate a healthy weight gain. Most women will consume on average between 2000 and 2400 calories a day during pregnancy, depending on their physical activity level. While pregnancy isn’t a license to eat cake and ice cream all day, it does afford many women the opportunity to relax a little bit about their diets and splurge a little more on items they may not have considered prior to getting pregnant. There is absolutely nothing wrong with having an extra bowl of ice cream here and there, provided you aren’t having ice cream and cake every day for breakfast. Good Pregnancy Nutrition Method can help you eat healthy during your pregnancy.
Most days you should aspire to choose foods that are low in saturated fat and nutrient dense. You should aspire to eat a diet that is well balanced and incorporates foods from each of the four food groups. Calcium is particularly important during pregnancy, so be sure to fill up on foods rich in calcium, including yogurt, cheese, milk, and dark leafy green vegetables.
Most women will gain about 1 pound per week during the second trimester. Your weight gain during pregnancy may vary from week to week. One month you may find that you gained 5 pounds whereas another month you gained only 2. Don’t focus on the scale too much, unless you find that you are gaining an excessive amount of weight. Remember that swelling and water retention are quite common in pregnancy, and can result in weight fluctuations. Try not to weigh yourself every day.
One thing you can do to promote your overall health and to ensure that you are able to drop your weight once you deliver your baby is to continue exercising throughout your pregnancy. Exercise will not only help expedite the labor and delivery process, but will help you feel better about your body before, during and after pregnancy. Some great choices during pregnancy include: walking, swimming, stationary biking and prenatal yoga. Pregnancy Exercise at Babyfit.com is designed with you and your baby’s overall health in mind. They will ensure you avoid any activities that have the potential to cause injury to yourself or the pregnancy.
Remember that your growing body is a beautiful reflection of the life you are carrying within. As you grow and expand, the baby inside of you is thanking you for nurturing and keeping them safe.