40 Weeks Pregnant
By Sarah on Mar 19, 2011 with Comments 0
This is the last stage of your pregnancy and you may find it quite a long week, especially if your due date has passed. There are mixed numbers of feelings in the women before the labor time, e.g. some feel hormonal feeling like that of premenstrual tension or some have unusual feelings.
Development in 40th Week of Pregnancy
This is the stage where all the development has been completed. However, now the major developments now occur in the heart and lungs of your baby after birth. Up till now placenta was been delivering oxygen and carbon dioxide, but after the birth lungs will take up their job. After birth, the blood present in the lungs is oxygenated and the baby begins to take normal breathing. The respiration rate varies for the few initial days, but normally the respiration rate of a baby after birth is 50 per minute.
Appearance
The appearance of your baby at this stage is pretty much similar to the one after birth. Your baby is tightly packed up in the uterus with his chin tucked onto his chest and knees curled up. Perhaps for this particular reason babies are usually more comfortable when held close to you. For the babies who were in breech position in the uterus, the knees may remain curled up for a day or two. There are babies who are born having one or both feet turned in or positional talipes. This is due to their position in the uterus. It is not something to worry about because this disappears with time.
Movement
You will be surprised to know that while still in the uterus, your baby is trying to move his head sideways to search for milk. You will anticipate these movements after his birth while holding him in your arms. Remember, he is already familiar with your movements and sounds and may react towards them.
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Filed Under: Pregnancy Weeks • Third Trimester
