Prenatal Development: Week 11

Even though you are only 11 weeks pregnant, you're probably already worried about weight gain. But there's no need to fret! Your weight can easily be controlled through a healthy diet and exercise.

Pregnancy Tip   Help your baby develop properly by taking a prenatal vitamin that delivers extra folic acid, like Biotegrity's Stage 1 . These vitamins have been specially formulated according to the latest Dietary Reference Intake guidlines for pregnancy. And get ready for your second trimester with their Stage 2 Prenatal Supplements.

Quick Growth
From this week until week 20, your baby will be growing rapidly - increasing in size from about 1.7 to 2.4 inches (44 to 60 millimeters) and 0.3 ounces (8 grams) to just over 6 inches (about 16 centimeters) and 10.5 ounces (or 300 grams). To accommodate all this growth, the blood vessels in the placenta are increasing both in size and in number to provide the baby with more nutrients. Your baby is now weighing about 8 grams and the head of your baby seems to take up 1/2 of the baby's size at the moment. Your baby's irises will start to develop this week and finger nails will appear. Your baby's reproductive organs begin to develop rapidly this week and the external genitalia will be recognizable.

Good Eats
Nourishing your baby usually requires that you gain weight - and in most cases, the recommended weight gain is 25 to 35 pounds over the course of the pregnancy. Because of the baby's weight, the placenta, the amniotic fluid, increased blood volume and an enlarged uterus and breasts, you can expect to gain between 2 and 5 pounds during the first trimester, 13 pounds during the second trimester, and 11 pounds during the last trimester. If you were overweight or underweight before pregnancy, your health care provider may have different recommendations for weight gain.

Select a week of development to read detailed information:

Week 1	Week 11	Week 21	Week 31
Week 2	Week 12	Week 22	Week 32
Week 3	Week 13	Week 23	Week 33
Week 4	Week 14	Week 24	Week 34
Week 5	Week 15	Week 25	Week 35
Week 6	Week 16	Week 26	Week 36
Week 7	Week 17	Week 27	Week 37
Week 8	Week 18	Week 28	Week 38
Week 9	Week 19	Week 29	Week 39
Week 10	Week 20	Week 30	Week 40

Need some adivce about your pregnancy? Visit our forum to get the answers you need