Prenatal Development: Week 12

Your baby will now be weighing around 14 grams and has reflexes. He can even practice movements in the digestive tract since the intestines now fit into his abdomen.

Hearing Things
Through the aid of a Doppler ultrasound, you should now be able to hear your baby's heart beat. Your baby's heart rate will be very fast; about 160 beats per minute. Her face has a profile now, complete with a tiny chin and nose. The brain will continue to develop, while the tiny fingernails and toenails form.

Pregnancy Tip As your second trimester begins to approach, your nutritional needs will change. Biotegrity's Stage 1 will help ensure that you get exactly what you need in each trimester. Stage 1 contains no vitamin A, which can be unhealthy during the first trimester, while Stage 2 has increased amounts of iron and vitamins A, B and C.

Getting Comfortable
Since you are now 12 weeks pregnant, you should start to feel a little better. You should feel less tired and the nausea should just about be gone now as well. During this period people, may tell you that you have that "pregnant glow." This is because of an increased blood volume and pregnancy hormones working together to increase oil gland secretion. This results in a flushed, plumper, smoother skin appearance. Your risk of a miscarriage is now greatly reduced. Your placenta will now start to take over the production of hormones.

Recommended Product:
If you want to follow your baby's development right on screen, expectantSee™ offers a pregnancy calendar. Set it to your due date and watch the baby develop along with your own. expectantSee also offers practical information about pregnancy milestones.

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

Have a question about your pregnancy? Get the answers you need from other moms-to-be in our What to Expect forum