The fourth month of pregnancy

You’re in a vibrant stage of pregnancy where a lot of exciting changes are occurring as you approach the fourth month. This stage represents the change from the first trimester, which can be exhausting and nauseating, to a period of increasing energy and discernible development.

Now that your baby is growing quickly, you may also start to notice physical changes in yourself. Your baby’s features are starting to show through at this point, and you might even start to feel their movements. As you approach the halfway point of your pregnancy journey, it’s a time of great anticipation and happiness.

Knowing what to anticipate this month will help you get ready and confidently welcome the changes. As you navigate this exciting time, let’s talk about what’s going on with both you and your baby.

What happens to the mother	What happens to the baby
Increased energy levels, less morning sickness, slight weight gain	Baby"s bones are developing, and facial features are becoming more defined
Appetite may increase, and belly becomes more noticeable	Baby can now move around, and the nervous system is maturing
Skin changes, like darkening of the nipples and a "pregnancy glow"	Baby"s limbs grow longer, and the heartbeat can be heard clearly

As the baby continues to develop quickly in the fourth month of pregnancy, expectant mothers go through significant physical and emotional changes. This stage is characterized by a noticeable baby bump, increased energy, and the easing of common symptoms like nausea. The mother may begin to feel the baby move gently and the baby’s features become more defined. Both parents can navigate this exciting time more easily and preparedly if they are aware of these changes.

General information

The fourth month of pregnancy opens the second trimester, which is often called the "golden" one, because the woman"s condition still allows her to do whatever she likes, not to limit herself too much in nutrition and physical activity, at the same time, she is no longer so worried about the outcome of the pregnancy, because the threat of miscarriage is significantly reduced after the end of the first trimester. The fourth month includes 14, 15, 16, 17 weeks and partially captures several days from the 18th week. Four full obstetric months – 16 weeks, but obstetric months differ from calendar months in that they have exactly 4 weeks, and in calendar months – a little more.

Pregnancy thus lasts 10 months when measured in obstetric months and slightly longer than nine months when measured in calendar months.

Development of the baby

With the exception of the lungs, every internal organ and system that the fetus has developed and is now functioning is a remarkable accomplishment. However, the baby’s lungs do not loom; instead, they start to swell and contract on occasion as it "rehearses" breathing movements. As a result, after birth, its chest will enlarge with free breathing. On Monday, it will be interesting to see how the child is feeling.

14 week

Consider a juicy peach. The child is now like this. He reached a height of 13–14 centimeters and put on 50 grams of weight. Such firm growth results in a small weight. As a result, the infant appears quite pitiful; it is extremely thin, with wrinkles and redness all over. It lacks subcutaneous fatty tissue and does not resemble the adorable babies from pregnancy and childbirth posters. However, this is only temporary.

Began to grow hairline on the head – there are children who already have a very impressive hairstyle, but so far all the kids are without exception blonde. There are no pigments in the child"s body yet that color the skin and hair. But your baby has already acquired its own identification feature – fingerprints. The skin pattern on the fingertips is not repeated, your baby is already unique. The optic nerve reaches the stage of development at which the baby no longer needs to be in constant darkness. The eyes, the formation of which continues, are already beginning to distinguish light from darkness. If you direct a very bright light at the woman"s tummy, the baby will begin to squint and its movements will become more restless and active. The brain begins to gradually establish control over the work of the organs and systems of the small organism. But it is too early to talk about fully coordinated movements. By the way, at the current stage the child has mastered the smile, but it is still unconscious, this is a reflex contraction of the facial muscles.

15 weeks

Your treasure in the womb becomes smarter – at this stage, the first convolutions and grooves on the brain begin to appear. In this regard, new cells of the nervous system – neurons – are formed at a breakneck speed. They interact and form the first neural connections. The baby becomes more mobile. His entire body is covered with a thick lubricant that protects the thin, parchment-like skin from the effects of amniotic fluid. The lubricant is fixed on the skin by a layer of thin hair, devoid of pigmentation – lanugo. As the skin becomes stronger, lanugo will begin to fall out, and the lubricant will disappear. By the time of birth, it will remain only in deep skin folds.

The infant is now 16 centimeters in length. The weight has finally shifted, reaching a weight of nearly 100 grams. The gallbladder, ducts, and liver all start to function. When bile enters the intestines, it turns the meconium, or original feces, dark green or even black. After birth, the baby will spend several days emptying itself into this.

This week, boys start producing their own sex hormone. The synthesis of testosterone commences. Girls grow well under the influence of their mother’s hormones because they do not yet have their own sex hormones.

16th week

It is thought that babies start dreaming at this point. Physiologists, however, are certain that this is untrue. Babies will have access to dreams when specific brain regions develop, but for the time being, tiny movements of the eyes beneath tightly closed eyelids can only be understood as the oculomotor muscles’ initial activity. They have just finished forming. Eyelashes have grown on the eyelids themselves. Because the brain’s frontal lobe is expanding rapidly, the forehead starts to slightly project forward. Your baby is now 17 centimeters in length and weighs nearly 130 grams after gaining another 30 to 40 grams of weight.

Though not all of the muscles are yet functional, they have all formed. The repertoire of expressions and grimaces grows, with the facial muscles being among the first to learn to contract and move. The infant can now hear high-frequency sounds thanks to the hearing aid, taking it to a new level. The phone rings, and he can already tell which is his mother’s voice and which is his father’s. The baby’s own hemoglobin is now visible, and he has a blood type and Rh factor. High accuracy is achieved in determining the baby’s gender through ultrasound scanning.

17th week

The infant has mastered the yawn and spit that adults will carefully wean him from after birth. His appearance takes on distinct characteristics. At this stage, if the embryos are similar to one another, noticeable differences become apparent, such as a distinctive high forehead or nose shape, long eyelashes, or thick eyebrows. The baby starts to develop the outward characteristics that nature and his parents’ genes have given him. The baby is now 20 centimeters in length and weighs over 160 grams. From this week on, the weight will rise more rapidly as subcutaneous fat starts to accumulate, gradually removing the child’s thinness.

The infant is now able to make their first conscious movements, which were all involuntary before. People develop an innate ability known as the instinct of self-preservation, which helps them save lives. If a loud noise frightens the child right now, it will congregate and become smaller.

Women who are expecting again can already feel the baby’s initial movements. First-time mothers will have to wait a few more weeks to give birth.

The well-being of the expectant mother

Even those with extremely severe toxicosis can feel that life is improving. The woman realizes that she started to look better—this is usually the case. The color and condition of the skin improve, the hair gets shinier, and the nails get stronger. The progesterone hormone helps the expectant mother with all of this by setting up the necessary circumstances for a successful childbearing outcome.

The well-being is improved in several directions at once. The psychological and emotional background gradually begins to level out. Unstable reactions, raging emotions and tearfulness with irritability become a thing of the past, as the psyche adapts to new conditions. The growing uterus rises higher, it has already gone beyond the pelvis and is now in the abdominal cavity. Its size does not yet greatly constrain other internal organs, so there is no great inconvenience, but relief is evident – the pressure on the bladder has decreased, frequent urination ceases to bother the expectant mother. The breasts grow by another half size and are now a source of special pride for a woman. The nipples may darken, small bumps may appear on them, which are called Montgomery tubercles. The breasts at this stage usually do not hurt, there are only slight sensations of increased sensitivity in the nipple area. Multiparous women may begin to secrete colostrum. Progesterone does everything to make the child comfortable in the uterus – it stores glucose and fat in the female body in case of hunger, softens the uterine muscles, relieves tone. But it also has side effects – for example, it (and not the growth of hair on the baby"s head, as many people think) causes frequent heartburn, increased gas formation and periodic intestinal upset.

Increased fatigue is one of the common signs of pregnancy at this point, but it is nothing compared to the woman’s half-conscious state during the first trimester.

A woman"s taste preferences continue to change, her own quirks appear. Some start eating salty foods, although they did not like such food before, others want to smell the rails in the subway, others demand that their husband urgently get them fresh strawberries in February. This is not related to whims, as many people think. A woman actually feels a need for what she asks for. For a long time, medicine tried to explain this need by saying that the child lacks something contained in the desired product. But recently this version has been abandoned, leaving the reasons unclear. When walking or standing for a long time, the lower back hurts. But this does not mean that the pain is sharp. We are talking about a slight pulling in the lower abdomen and lower back – such sensations are caused by the beginning of the stretching of the ligaments that hold the uterus. This is normal, you should not worry. In a calm state, lying on your back, women who are not giving birth for the first time, at the end of the third month can already feel the first movements of the baby. The more active the woman is, the more she moves, the less likely it is to feel the baby"s kicks so early. Usually, a woman feels the first movement in the evening, before going to bed, when she is completely relaxed.

Belly

In the fourth month of pregnancy, the belly is already clearly defined. In thin women, it will manifest earlier. Even at a later stage, pregnancy in overweight women may go undetected. The uterus gradually rises upward and exits the small pelvis, which causes the belly to grow. In addition, the traditional method of determining the sex by the shape and size of the abdomen does not hold up to any health criticism. The tummy appears very neat and small, and there is no point in assuming whether it is a boy or a girl based on the shape of the tummy—this is already shown by ultrasound.

Those who have multiple pregnancies, polyhydramnios, or a narrow pelvis are likely to have a rapidly expanding belly. Women who have oligohydramnios, wide hips, and placenta attachment to the back wall will see a slow growth of the belly.

A woman need not worry just yet if she does not want people to know her secret—the belly is not too noticeable, and you can always claim that you have just gained weight and people will believe you. Clothing that fits too tight around the waist or the belt cannot be put on a growing fetus. It’s time to switch to looser styles that don’t press against the abdomen. Furthermore, you cannot tighten your belly because this could be fatal for the unborn child.

Weight gain

It is imperative to monitor weight gain from this period. Of course, it is optimal to do this from the very beginning of pregnancy, in extreme cases, at least know your initial weight before pregnancy. From the 4th month, the placenta actively grows and develops, and therefore the amount of blood in the body of the expectant mother sharply increases. This fact alone leads to an increase. In the first trimester, a woman could already gain several kilograms or could lose weight due to nausea, toxicosis and the inability to eat normally, but now she will only gain and nothing else. It is important to monitor your weight weekly at home, and once a month at a routine doctor"s appointment report on your own measurements. This will help the doctor quickly notice a possible tendency to excess body weight, as well as earlier suspect invisible to the eye and very dangerous internal edema that may appear in the expectant mother.

• for very thin women, it is permissible to add 4.5 kilograms from the beginning of pregnancy to their original weight;
• for women of normal build without signs of excess weight – 3-3.5 kg;
• for overweight women – no more than 2.5 kilograms.

By the middle of the fourth month, if a woman has gained six kilograms, this is clearly too much. Seeking advice from a physician is imperative in this regard. Gaining too much weight now can lead to complications during childbirth and severe gestosis in the third trimester. It can result in both maternal hypertension and fetal hypoxia.

Toxicosis

Symptoms of toxicosis by the beginning of the 4th month subside in 80% of women who suffered from it in the early stages, and by the end of the 4th month only one in 10 such women continues to experience discomfort, but even for her it is noticeably lighter than before. The woman"s immunity has adapted to the new endocrine conditions, it has stopped fighting and struggling with the fetus, the child is no longer threatened with intrauterine death due to an inadequate reaction of the mother"s immune system. The placenta has begun to work, and therefore the load on the woman"s blood circulation and her metabolism has changed. This is what causes the disappearance of toxicosis.

If this is the case, congratulations on your unique standing and status. If you have an intolerance to smells and are still feeling queasy, consider the following suggestions:

• add more protein foods to your diet (don"t overdo it, 100 grams in addition to your existing menu will be enough);
• agree with your doctor on the possibility of eating salty foods – salt helps to cope with nausea and its consequences, restores the salt balance, but do not forget to drink plenty of fluids;
• try not to eat large portions, split your diet into 6-7 meals, make each portion small so that it can be digested faster;
• add more vegetables and fruits;
• keep a bottle of lemon essential oil on hand – when nausea attacks, add a drop to your wrist and breathe it in for about a minute.

In the rare event that nothing helps, seek medical advice.

There is a lot of growth and change during the fourth month of pregnancy. You might also begin to notice physical changes in your body as your baby develops. Many women start to feel more energised and less prone to morning sickness during this time.

Maintaining routine prenatal care is crucial during this month. Your baby’s development will be monitored by your healthcare provider to make sure everything is proceeding as planned. Talking about any worries or inquiries you may have about the upcoming pregnancy journey is also a great idea at this point.

Ultimately, you can maximize this exciting phase by adopting a healthy lifestyle and remaining informed. Keep in mind that each pregnancy is different, so pay attention to your body and get help when you need it. Savor the moment as you watch your child develop and get ready for the journey that lies ahead.

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