16 Weeks Pregnant

Baby at 16 Weeks Pregnant 🚼

Baby Natural is developing many beautiful details this week, like creases on her palms and knuckles, and actual fingerprints. Awww!

Your umbilical cord is totally mature now, with one vein that carries oxygenated, nutrient-rich blood to your baby, and two arteries that carry deoxygenated, nutrient-depleted blood away.

Thanks to her newly formed taste buds, baby can discern sweet, bitter, and sour flavors in the amniotic fluid that surrounds her. Even more incredible, research indicates that the foods you eat during pregnancy may affect baby's palate later on!

Main point: If you want your baby to love veggies and other healthy foods, make sure you’re eating yours! I remember craving milk and meat with my daughter, and she loves both to this day. ☺️

You at 16 Weeks Pregnant 🚺

Has anyone told you that you’re “glowing” yet? It’s not just a random compliment. Pregnancy glow is actually a very real thing.

Your blood volume increases from the start of pregnancy and peaks around 32 weeks pregnant. This increase in blood volume, which diverts more blood to the skin, is responsible for your beautiful glow.

By 32 weeks, your blood volume will have increased by nearly 50%, and will stay that way until delivery. Most of the blood volume increase is fluid volume, so drinking plenty of water is important.

Moving on, let's cover one not-so-pleasant side effect of pregnancy: an increase in vaginal discharge. It usually starts sometime in the second trimester, and increases until delivery. You can thank your high estrogen levels for this lovely development.

But it happens for good reason. Vaginal discharge during pregnancy helps to cleanse the vagina continuously to help keep harmful bacteria away from your growing baby.

Pregnancy-week-by-week-mama-at-16-weeks-pregnant-Mama-Natural