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After fertilization, the embryo develops rapidly. Sometimes, before a woman realizes she is pregnant, her heart beats! Find out what happens in the earliest stages of pregnancy - the first month of pregnancy.
A lot is decided at the time offertilization , i.e. the penetration of the sperm into the egg. 24 hours after fertilization, their genetic material fuses to form 23 pairs of chromosomes that carry genes. It is their unique combination that determines many features of the future child, e.g. gender, appearance, temperament, talents. 40 hours after fertilizationembryoconsists of two cells but is still dividing; after four days it has 16 cells. Then it travels from the fallopian tube, where it was fertilized, to the uterus. On the 7th day after fertilization, as a blastocyst (a ball of about 100 cells, surrounded by an outer membrane), it nests in its mucosa. Only from that moment you can consider that you arepregnant(as much as 40% of blastocysts fail!). From now on, the changes will take place very quickly, and what is more, at such an early stage they are of great importance for the whole life of a person to be born.
The course of pregnancy: 1st and 2nd weeks of fetal life
At the time of implantation in the uterus, the embryo is 0.7-1 mm thick, so you can see it. It is a group of cells with a lot of information - such a person is recorded on a compact disc. These cells are first arranged in two, and then in three layers, from which all parts of the body will arise. On the one hand, the skin, eyes, ears and the entire nervous system will be formed, on the other: the respiratory system, intestines, bladder, thyroid, liver and pancreas, and on the third: bones, muscles, connective tissue, circulatory system, genitourinary system and genitals. . The "baby" at this stage looks like a disk of living jelly. The jelly is transparent, slightly grayish. By day 17, the embryo will be surrounded by something resembling a small bubble - an amniotic sac is formed.
ImportantHow does it look now
After 4 weeks, the embryo is 4-5 mm long and looks like a shrimp because its body consists of a head, body and tail. The brain, heart and the most important internal organs have already emerged. The heart started beating around day 22 after conception.
The course of pregnancy: third and fourth weeks of gestation
Ok. On the 18th day after fertilization, the gelatinous disc curls in two, into the basic shape of the future baby. At the edge of the disc, a furrow is formed first, and then an empty tube, from which the nervous system will arise. This tube, medicinally known as the neural tube, should close around day 22 after conception, connecting the brain with the spinal cord. This is crucial for your baby's development. If this tube does not close properly, the child will be born with a neural tube defect. Its consequences may be: spinal bifurcation, a hernia of the brain and spinal cord, and anencephaly. After the neural tube is closed, the edges of the disc connect and bend to form another tube that will form the digestive system and lungs.
The fourth week of fetal life is the week of the heart and brain. The central nervous system begins to take shape - the brain and spinal cord, and the brain forms three basic parts: the forebrain, the midbrain, and the backbrain. Approx. On day 22, a tiny heart - so far in the form of an S-shaped tube - begins to perform its first chaotic contractions.
This is important!
Start taking preparations with folic acid as soon as possible - it prevents neural tube defects. If you have a positive pregnancy test or if you intuitively feel that you are pregnant, start supplementation immediately (before you see your doctor) at a dose of 0.4 mg of folic acid per day.
Embryo after one month of life in the womb
About the 28th day after fertilization, the embryo is 4-5 mm long, and its shape resembles a shrimp - with a head, bent body and… tail. A dark spot is clearly visible on the head - this is the eye. The optic nerve and eye lenses are formed. Through the transparent body, you can see the heart and the threads of the bloodstream through which blood begins to circulate. There are also early buds of the liver, pancreas, kidneys and lungs. The placenta begins to function, supplying the fetus with oxygen and nutrients. When to see a doctor? Pregnancy tests give quite reliable results as early as 2-3 days after the menstruation has stopped, but at 100%. pregnancy can only be determined by a gynecologist. You don't have to go to him right away - doctors advise you to wait for at least 2-3 weeks more to give the embryo time to develop.
Note: doctors count age of pregnancy, assuming the date of the last menstruation as its beginning, so according to these calculations, pregnancy begins … two weeks before conception. In our calendar, however, we use the fertilizing age, i.e. the age counted from the actual beginning of a new life.