Your dream child at 7th week
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At 7 weeks of pregnancy a lot of things are happening with you and your baby. You’re midway through your first trimester and everything is moving quite quickly. Your body is still working incredibly hard, and you will feel tired. If you haven’t looked into getting an OB/GYN, now is probably a good time to do so, as critical tests and check-ups should be done from now on until the birth of your baby.

Development

Between now and 20 weeks, your baby will be growing rapidly, and body parts that formed in the first few weeks of life (such as the heart and brain) will become more specialized and complicated.

  • Now, the heart has four clearly defined chambers, and although it is still simple, it has regular beat.
  • The head and brain are growing rapidly, with ridges defining the three areas of the brain. This areas will develop into:
    • The forebrain, which controls memory and thinking.
    • The midbrain, which is responsible for coordinating messages.
    • The hindbrain, which regulates the heart, breathing and movement of muscles in the body.
  • Also important: She's developing a permanent set of kidneys
  • The liver is churning out large amounts of red blood cells until the bone marrow forms and takes over this role.
  • The big news this week: Hands and feet are emerging from developing arms and legs — although they look more like paddles at this point than the tiny, pudgy extremities you're daydreaming about holding and tickling.
  • Amazingly, your baby already has an appendix!

Appearance

The limb buds are now developing into more recognizable, paddle-shaped arms and legs. A neck is starting to separate relatively large head from the body. There is a dark tinge where the eyes are forming, and eyelids are also developing. In profile, the tip of the nose is present. Your baby even has lips and a tongue, even though it is only the size of baked bean !!!!


Surprising Facts: Could it be twins?

week7

Sure, twins run in families and you're more likely to be carrying multiples if you've undergone fertility treatments, but any woman can become pregnant with more than one baby. Could you be one of them?

Your odds of carrying twins
  • Overall, about one in 31 births (greater than 3 percent) are twin births. But your chances of having twins are much less — 1 in 89 — if you conceive without medical assistance. The overall odds of bearing triplets or higher-order multiples is about 1 in 565.
  • Identical twins usually happen by chance. Your likelihood of having identical, or monozygotic, twins (when one fertilized egg divides in half) is about 1 in 250.
  • A number of factors affect your odds of having fraternal twins or higher-order multiples. Fertility treatments dramatically increase your odds. On average, 20 to 25 percent of women who take fertility drugs or undergo in vitro fertilization or other assisted reproductive techniques end up carrying more than one baby.

Other factors that influence the likelihood of having fraternal twins

  • Once you have a set of fraternal twins, you're twice as likely to have another set in a future pregnancy.
  • Fraternal twins run in families, so if you're a twin or related to twins, you're more likely to have a set yourself. Your partner's family history doesn't appear to affect your odds of having twins.
  • The older you are, the greater your chances of having naturally occurring fraternal twins or higher-order multiples. Hormonal changes in older women are a likely cause.
  • Fraternal twins are more common than average in African Americans and less common in Hispanics and Asians.
  • The more pregnancies you've had, the greater your chances of having twins.
  • Twins are more common in large and tall women than in small women.

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