Week 27 of pregnancy | Second Trimester

This is the very last week of your second trimester. Let’s take a closer look at Mom’s weight gain as well as Baby’s facial development.

MOM
If this week you find yourself packing on the pounds despite having given the ice-cream and pickle combination – which you seem to have grown very fond of for some reason – a wide berth, don’t be too alarmed. From now until Week 36 of your pregnancy, you’ll put on quite a fair amount of weight -all in the name of a healthy pregnancy. A healthy pregnancy generally sees a woman gain between 11 and 16 kilograms. This is not all fat, though. Your body will be producing enough amniotic fluid to keep your baby safe and healthy, as well as enough blood to keep your and your baby’s growing body nourished. A common complaint at this stage of pregnancy is that of shortness of breath. It is completely understandable – taking into account that your uterus has now grown to just below your ribcage and your lungs can’t fully expand. Despite this, your baby is perfectly fine and lacking for nothing, while at the same time your circulatory system is working just perfectly.

BABY
By this stage of the pregnancy, your baby’s facial features will be almost completely developed. Many expectant parents who have had a scan at this time find the little one to be pulling funny faces back at them. The baby’s brain is also continuing in its rapid growth, while the skin is becoming thicker and fleshier as well as increasingly more wrinkled – after spending so much time lying in the amniotic fluid. Just think about what a prune you look like after a twenty-minute bath!

DAD
Having touched on your partner’s penchant for a strange combination of foods – ice-cream and pickles being one of the tamer ones – perhaps it’s time to give you some handy tips. If there is one particular food that your partner seems to have grown very fond of during pregnancy, try to keep a small stock of that particular product on hand to avoid any midnight runs to the shop. You should also, however, encourage her to choose a healthier snack from time to time.

That’s it for the second trimester of your pregnancy. Next week, as we dive headlong into the third trimester, we’ll discuss early labour signs as well as the frequency of your appointments with your practitioner. Until then, put your feet up and enjoy those pickles!