In-the-womb milestones

Learn what baby is up to!

Humans begin developing f r om the very second of conception – which can be hard to believe when you’re in the early stages of pregnancy, and can’t feel even a flutter of movement. But thanks to technology, we can now track the growing baby’s in-the-womb milestones.

1 HEARTBEAT

The foetal heart begins pumping blood around the developing body as early as the fifth week of pregnancy. You won’t be able to hear this fast, rhythmic sound, however, until around 10 weeks – usually via a Doppler ultrasound in your doctor’s rooms. A baby’s heart rate is an astounding 120 to 160 beats per minute; the resting heart rate of a grownup is 60 to 100 beats per minute.

2 “BREATHING”

Although the mother breathes for her unborn baby throughout the pregnancy, with the umbilical cord, providing all the oxygen needed, by the ninth week the foetus will begin “practising” to breathe – that is, making breathing-like movements.

3 HICCUPS

Although you’ll only feel these little rhythmic or jerky movements from around 27 weeks, your baby may have been having hiccups since as early as week 12. Hiccups aren’t uncomfortable or dangerous for the baby. And don’t worry if you never feel your baby having hiccups – some just don’t have them.

4 THUMBSUCKING AND YAWNING

At around nine weeks, the foetus may yawn and suck its thumbs, usually preferring the right one. In fact, some studies have shown that the foetus will favour one hand (left or right) for thumbsucking in the womb, and that this is usually the child’s dominant hand after birth.

5 SWALLOWING

From week 12, your baby will be swallowing, and its digestive system will be working. It’s also around this time that the foetus develops tastebuds, and can actually taste the foods the mom eats. Research has shown that from as early as week 15, the baby may begin to show a preference for sweet flavours by swallowing

more amniotic fluid when it’s sweet-tasting, and less when it’s bitter.

6 URINATING

The baby will have started weeing by about week 12. This urine mixes with the amniotic fluid, which the baby swallows and digests. It’s then filtered by the baby’s kidneys and urinated back into the uterus. By the end of the pregnancy, baby wee makes up quite a lot of the amniotic fluid, and the foetus may swallow and wee up to two cups a day.

7 BLINKING

Your baby will start reacting to light (for example, by moving away from very bright light) around the 15th week, and will open his eyes for the first time around week 28.

8 HEARING YOUR VOICE

Research has shown that when babies are born, they recognise their mom’s voice. That’s because they’ve been listening to it for the past few months. Foetal hearing starts developing around week 19, and, especially during the last 10 weeks of pregnancy, babies actively listen to their mothers’ voices.

9 DREAMING

Ultrasound tests have shown that babies experience REM sleep – “rapid eye movement” sleep, associated with dreaming – from around 30 weeks. While there’s no way to confirm that they’re actually dreaming, it’s certainly a possibility.

10 STRETCHING AND KICKING

Babies stretch, kick and do somersaults in the womb from early in the pregnancy but most first-time mothers don’t feel these movements until around 24 weeks. Second-time moms, who may be more aware of what to look out for, could feel these first flutters as early as around 12 weeks. Although, as the pregnancy wears on, your baby will have less and less room to move, this won’t stop him, and lots of movement is a sign that your baby is thriving (see box below).