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The
text on this page will take you less than
two minutes to read.
The facts will stay with you forever.
Fetal Development
From conception to birth
(taken from the National Right to Life site)
Illustration by R.K. O'Bannon
Day
1: fertilization: all human chromosomes
are present; unique human life begins.
1 Week::
embryo begins implantation in the uterus.
Week 3:
heart begins to beat with the child's own
blood, often a different type than the mothers'.
End of Week 3:
By the end of third week the child's backbone
spinal column and nervous system are forming.
The liver, kidneys and intestines begin
to take shape.
Week 4:
By the end of week four the child is ten
thousand times larger than the fertilized
egg.
Week 5:
Eyes, legs, and hands begin to develop.
Week 6: Brain waves are
detectable; mouth and lips are present;
fingernails are forming.
Week 7:
Eyelids, and toes form, nose distinct. The
baby is kicking and swimming.
Week
8: Every organ is in place, bones
begin to replace cartilage, and fingerprints
begin to form. By the 8th week the baby
can begin to hear.
Weeks 9 and 10:
Teeth begin to form, fingernails
develop. The baby can turn his head, and
frown. The baby can hiccup.
Weeks 10 and 11:
The baby can "breathe" amniotic
fluid and urinate.
Week 11 the baby can grasp
objects placed in its hand; all organ systems
are functioning. The baby has a skeletal
structure, nerves, and circulation.
Week 12: The baby has all
of the parts necessary to experience pain,
including nerves, spinal cord, and thalamus.
Vocal cords are complete. The baby can suck
its thumb.
Week 14:
At this age, the heart pumps several quarts
of blood through the body every day.
Week 15:
The baby has an adult's taste buds.
Month 4:
Bone Marrow is now beginning to form. The
heart is pumping 25 quarts of blood a day.
By the end of month 4 the baby will be 8-10
inches in length and will be one half of
its birth weight.
Week 17:
The baby can have dream (REM) sleep
.
Week 19: Babies can routinely
be saved at 21 to 22 weeks after fertilization,
and sometimes they can be saved even younger.
Week 20:
The earliest stage at which Partial birth
abortions are performed. At 20 weeks the
baby recognizes its' mothers voice.
Weeks 20-24: The
baby practices breathing by inhaling amniotic
fluid into its developing lungs. The baby
will grasp at the umbilical cord when it
feels it. Most mothers feel an increase
in movement, kicking, and hiccups from the
baby. Oil and sweat glands are now functioning.
The baby is now twelve inches long or more,
and weighs up to one and a half pounds.
Weeks 28-36: Eyeteeth
are present. The baby opens and closes his
eyes. The baby is using four of the five
senses (vision, hearing, taste, and touch.)
He knows the difference between waking and
sleeping, and can relate to the moods of
the mother. The baby's skin begins to thicken,
and a layer of fat is produced and stored
beneath the skin. Antibodies are built up,
and the baby's heart begins to pump 300
gallons of blood per day. Approximately
one week before the birth the baby stops
growing, and "drops" usually head
down into the pelvic cavity.
Sources Used:
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DID
YOU KNOW / OVERVIEW?
- 1 day - conception
- Life begins
- 1 week - tiny human
implants in mother's uterus
- 2.5 weeks - heart
begins to beat
- 3 weeks - heart
pumps blood
- 6 weeks - skeleton
completely formed, brain waves are
recorded.
- 8 weeks - ALL BODY
SYSTEMS PRESENT
- 11 weeks - all
body systems working
- 16 weeks - grabs
with hands, swims, kicks, turns,
somersaults
- 18 weeks - vocal
cords work, can cry
- 23 weeks - 15%
chance of viability outside of womb
if birth premature.*
- 24 weeks - 56%
of babies survive premature birth.*
- 25 weeks - 79%
of babies survive premature birth.*
(*Source: M. Allen
et. al., "The Limits of Viability."
New England Journal
of Medicine. 11/25/93: Vol. 329, No.
22, p. 1597.)
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PICTURES
TELL A
THOUSAND
WORDS
Six Weeks
Sixteen Weeks
Twenty Weeks
"Samuel"
Twenty One Weeks
Picture
used with permission by
Michael Clancy.
Click here for Samuel's Story
(more pictures on the way)
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