Your bump
Adds fat. From seven months your baby’s growth becomes dependent on being able to secrete insulin. Insulin permits the entry of sugar from the blood into the fat cells, and once sugar is inside the cells, insulin stimulates the metabolism into protein and fat. In this way insulin contributes to the building up of a little body fat. So now your baby’s body is becoming plumper and rounder. Note that your baby has increased its weight more than 10 times in 11 weeks! And from now on she or he increases its weight by 27 grams on a daily basis. And here is a comforting fact - nine out of ten babies born now survives. Illustration by Karoline Lenhult
You
Less room for your lungs. The baby is growing and you feel it inside your body; you are a little heavier and sweatier. Have you also noticed that you're getting out of breath more quickly than you normally would do? This is completely normal. It's because the baby's growing and so there's less room for your stomach and lungs. Your heart is also beating a bit faster (to transport the increased amount of blood) and therefore your breathing is a bit faster than normal. But whilst it becomes a little more demanding, you perhaps have also noticed that you are making more and more contact with the little human inside? If you push your stomach lightly, you may get a push back. Ask your doctor or midwife to help you recognise the different body parts of your baby. It’s fun to know if it’s a foot or a hand giving you a bump or if you are stroking a head or a little bottom.
