YOUR PREGNANCY – WEEK 16

Take another peek at your  baby

WEEK 16:

Your Baby

• Ears, arms, hands, fingers, legs, feet and toes are completely formed

• Heart beat is between 120 to 160 beats per minute

• Weight is approximately ¼ lb; length is about 2-1/4 to 4 inches

• Approximately 1 cup of amniotic fluid surrounds the baby

• Sex of the baby may be seen on an ultrasound; however, it may not be accurate until 19 weeks of pregnancy

Your Body

• You begin feeling more energetic

• Nausea and vomiting subsides; however, some women will still feel nausea and may experience episodes of vomiting throughout pregnancy

• Constipation may begin

• Mood swings occur (feeling happy and then sad for no reason)

• Appetite may increase

• Sweating more often

• A pulling sensation in the lower part of the abdomen, on the sides just above your hip bone and sometimes in the groin area, may occur due to the abdomen enlarging, ligaments being stretched and the baby growing

• You are now producing colostrom (first breast milk)

Office Visits Include:

• Blood pressure; weight check

• Urine dip for sugar and protein

• Abdominal measurement (fundal height) to determine growth of the uterus and baby

• Listening to the fetal heart beat with a Doppler

• Quad screening (blood test)

• Amniocentesis (if indicated)

• Selection of Pediatrician