Fetal development in pregnancy week 25:
Your baby is now about 1 ½ pounds and measures around 12 inches long. You are closely approaching your third trimester and the final stretch of your pregnancy. Now is a great time to investigate and start birthing classes if you haven’t already done so. By now, people may be noticing that you are pregnant. Maternity clothes may be a necessity, although you may still fit into some of your pre-pregnancy, looser clothing.
Taste buds are developing at this point and the baby even is able to distinguish sweet tastes. Blood vessels are developing in the lungs to prepare for their vital function after birth, but for now they are filled will amniotic fluid and are practicing breathing movements. Breathing is controlled by the nervous system.
If you were to shine a flashlight on your abdomen, the baby will turn their head toward the light because the optic nerve is now working. Fingerprints, toenails and fingernails are fully formed and the spine is straightening out. Bones are continuing to harden at this time.
Vernix, the waxy substance that covers your baby, is forming at a rapid pace. This protects their skin and helps regulate body temperature.
Maternal Changes
By the time you reach 25 weeks pregnant you are a magnificent and glowing specimen. Your tummy while big is not huge and bulky, and for the most part you are probably enjoying the attention everyone is offering you during pregnancy. Many women are shocked to find just how courteous and helpful many people are during their pregnancy.
If you have young children they may be curious about the baby in your tummy. Many women decide to hold off telling their children until they are closer to delivery. Most children have no sense of time hence have a hard time understanding that the baby will not come for several more weeks yet.
During your prenatal visit around 25 weeks you should talk with your doctor and become familiar with the symptoms of pre-term labor. There are several warning signs you should be aware of that include:
- Persistent and rhythmic cramping in the lower belly.
- Contractions that come more frequently than 4 in an hour.
- Cramping accompanied by low backache.
- Watery or bloody discharge or leaking.
If you are experiencing any of these or other uncomfortable or unusual symptoms be sure to contact your doctor immediately. Your doctor can often take steps to prevent delivery if premature labor is threatened. The longer your baby stays inside of you in most cases, the better her chances for survival.
Dad
Are you being heard? If you have opinions about things that relate to baby – speak up! Sometimes mom has a tendency to just give her opinion. Maybe she’s asked and you’ve clammed up? Don’t bother, just share what your opinion is on raising baby.
Maternity Clothes
Many pregnant women prefer buying career separates when shopping for maternity clothes. Some of these moms may already have a few career separates from a previous pregnancy, while others may find that they are simply trying to fill the gaps in their current maternity wardrobe.
Career separates are a good choice if you need a few pieces of career maternity items that you can mix/match and use time and time again. Take a look at work pant sets from Destination Maternity for mix/match options with pants. Career separates can also be a good option if you are looking for a wardrobe with a little versatility and fun.
Pregnancy Health Tips
At some point between 24 and 28 weeks, your healthcare provider will order a glucose-screening test. This test is considered fairly routine and is used to check for gestational diabetes – a form of diabetes (high blood sugar) that develops during pregnancy.
When you arrive for the glucose-screening test (sometimes called a “one-hour glucose tolerance test”), you will be asked to drink a sweetened liquid that contains 50 g of glucose. This drink tastes like a very sweet version of sprite or orange soda. An hour later, a blood sample will be taken to measure how well your body metabolized the glucose. A blood glucose that is higher than 130 mg/dL is considered abnormal, and you will have to undergo further tests to verify whether you have gestational diabetes or not.
The one-hour glucose tolerance test will detect 90 percent of gestational diabetes, but it will also test abnormal for 20 to 25 percent of normal women.
If your test result is abnormal, your healthcare provider will likely recommend that you undergo another diabetes screening test, called the 100 g oral glucose tolerance test. This is a three hour test that requires you to fast (abstain from food) ahead of time.
During this three-hour test, you will also be required to drink a sweetened drink that contains 100 g of glucose. Your blood glucose level will be tested four times within that three hour period. If two out of the four blood tests come out abnormal, you will be diagnosed with gestational diabetes.
Gestational diabetes is a worldwide pregnancy complication that concerns many healthcare providers. In the United States, some studies estimate that the prevalence of this condition is as high as 14 percent of all pregnancies!
Gestational diabetes can cause major pregnancy complications, including having a very large baby and possible cesarean birth, preeclampsia, stillbirths, and respiratory distress syndrome. After birth, your baby is at higher risk for becoming obese and diabetic.
Although any pregnant woman can develop gestational diabetes, some women are at higher risk than others. These include women with a family history of diabetes, women older than 25, previous delivery of a baby weighing more than 9 pounds, polycystic ovary syndrome, hypertension, and current use of glucocorticoids.
With proper care, most women with gestational diabetes go on to deliver a health baby. Monitoring your blood glucose levels, exercising, and eating a healthy diet will help you control your diabetes and ensure you have a great outcome.
Gestational diabetes typically goes away after your baby is born.
Twin Tips
Starting to feel huge? If your clothes don’t fit that might not make you feel any better. What do mothers of multiples do about maternity clothes? So mothers of multiples suggest skipping maternity stores after a certain point in late pregnancy and just heading to the larger sizes of clothing. There is nothing like a shirt that fits to make you feel better!