MONTH 3
Fetus Forming: Construction Zone Ahead
Weeks 9 Through 13
Welcome to the last month of your first trimester. Woo-hoo! If you’ve been through the wringer with morning sickness (or all-day sickness), fatigue, and emotional highs and lows, you will be thrilled to move into your second trimester. Things do get better! By Week 9, your baby is the size of grape. In Week 10, he or she officially goes from an embryo to a fetus. Congrats! And, by Week 13, your gorgeous baby has grown to the size of a nectarine, about 3 inches long.
YOUR BABY’S DEVELOPMENT
• In Week 9, your baby’s head continues to develop as his or her beautiful face is rounding. Muscles take form, all major limbs and joints (such as the shoulders, elbows, wrists, knees, and ankles) are working. The heart has evolved into four chambers. The valves are forming. Your baby’s external sex organs are developing, but they are not visible yet. You might hear a heartbeat, but that usually happens the following week.
• In Week 10, tooth buds materialize, your baby’s stomach begin to produce digestive juices, and his or her kidneys can start to produce urine. Eyelids are more developed. The ears and external features are almost formed. Your baby’s heartbeat might be heard. Exciting!
• In Week 11, your baby’s body is straightening. His or her skin is transparent. Hair follicles are forming. Fingers and toes have separated, and nail beds begin to appear. Tiny tooth buds form below the gums. The placenta begins to function. This amazing organ provides oxygen and nutrients to your baby.
• In Week 12, your baby’s bone marrow produces white blood cells. The pituitary gland begins to produce hormones. The intestines, which have been developing outside of the baby, now have moved back into the abdomen.
• In Week 13, your baby’s brain continues to develop rapidly. Vocal cords are being primed to make that first cry. Fingerprints are developed.
CHANGES IN YOUR BODY
Your body will experience changes similar to those in Month 2. Fatigue and sleepiness might continue to be your middle name. Some women may have nausea, bloating, gas, constipation, heartburn, indigestion, food aversions and cravings, sensitivity to smell, and the frequent need to pee. Headaches are common. Some bellies begin to get rounder about now. Breast fullness and heaviness is common. Tenderness, tingling, and darkening areolas might occur now, or at any time during pregnancy. Blood volume increases, giving some women that “glow.”
IDEAL NUTRITION
Your nutrition focus is foods to enhance your baby’s cell, brain, eye, bone, and teeth development. The following nutrients will help achieve this.
• B vitamins: cell division, brain formation, nervous system development, morning sickness
• Calcium: bones and teeth
• Magnesium: bones and muscle development
• Manganese: bone development and nerve health
• Omega-3s: brain, eye, and nervous system development
• Phosphorus: genetic material
• Potassium: nerve and muscle function
• Vitamin A: cell structure, bones, teeth, nervous system
• Vitamin C: iron absorption, healthy teeth and gums, immunity
• Vitamin D: calcium absorption
• Vitamin E: cell structure and genetic material
• Vitamin K: bone mineralization
• Zinc: cell structure and genetic material
PROTEIN
Eggs
Meats
Nuts: almonds, cashews, pistachios, Brazil nuts, walnuts, and nut butters
Pork
Poultry
Seafood (fish and shellfish): salmon (wild and Atlantic), tuna, mackerel, herring, sardines in oil, halibut, cod, and catfish
Seeds: sunflower, pumpkin, chia, hemp seed, and flaxseed
Tahini
Tofu and tempeh
DAIRY
Cheese
Enriched plant-based milks (rice soy, and almond)
Fortified dairy milk
Fortified orange juice and other juices
Yogurt
GRAINS/LEGUMES
All-bran cereal and other fortified breakfast cereals
Beans: soy, black, navy, pinto, kidney, white, great northern, black-eyed, pink, cranberry, and cannellini
Chickpeas
Corn and flour tortillas
Edamame
Folic acid–fortified products
Lentils
Oatmeal
Peanuts
Wheat germ
Whole grains: quinoa, barley, brown rice, bulgur, and whole wheat couscous
VEGETABLES
Artichokes
Asparagus
Avocados
Baked potato with skin on and all other potatoes
Beets
Broccoli and broccoli rabe
Brussels sprouts
Butternut squash
Cabbage
Carrots
Cauliflower
Dark, leafy greens: kale, collards, mustard, Swiss chard, bok choy, and turnip greens
Mushrooms
Pumpkin
Red bell peppers
Romaine lettuce
Snow peas
Spinach
Sweet potatoes
Tomatoes and tomato juice
FRUITS
Bananas
Cantaloupe
Citrus fruits and juices: oranges, tangerines, grapefruit, lemonade
Dried apricots
Guava
Kiwi
Lychee
Mangoes
Papaya
Pineapple
Raspberries
Strawberries
FATS/OTHER
Brewer’s or nutritional yeast
Olive oil
Omega-3s
Molasses
Seaweed and kelp