Pregnancy Week 24

Your Baby

Your baby’s environment is becoming more crowded as it is growing and filling up the space inside the uterus.

Changes in the appearance of your baby’s skin start taking place. Right now, the skin is wrinkled. When more fat is deposited and more muscle development takes place, it will begin to look smooth.

Baby’s skin is not only wrinkled but is also transparent because it’s so thin. Therefore at this time, if you could see your baby, the bones, organs, and blood vessels would be visible, as they lie just beneath the skin.

Your baby continues to grow at a steady pace. More than 170g of weight will be gained during this week alone. This growth spurt helps your baby prepare for life outside your uterus.

Your baby weighs just under 700g, the equivalent of three average grapefruit. Most of the weight gained during this time in your baby’s development is muscle and bone mass and weight increases from growing organs and tissues. Very little fat is being manufactured right now. Ultimately, most of the muscles involved in movement develop before birth, and all those that remain are formed by baby’s first birthday. Muscles increase in length and width in order to grow with the skeleton. Their ultimate size depends on how much exercise baby gives them.

You

Every day, you should become more and more aware of the baby’s movement. Although the bumps and thumps are now obvious to you, it may be a few more weeks before someone else can feel the baby move by touching your abdomen.

As the baby’s heartbeat becomes louder, it may be possible to hear the baby’s heart by placing an ear to your abdomen - a yoga-like pose that may be quite impossible for you to achieve, but easy for others!

A stethoscope will help you hear your baby’s heartbeat loud and strong.