Pregnancy can be defined as the condition that has a developing embryo or fetus in the woman’s body. The union of female egg (medically known as ovum) with sperm is termed as fertilization, or conception, and it is this successful meeting that produces the embryo.
The pregnancy includes period from getting conceived to giving birth to the baby, and it generally lasts 10 lunar months (40 wk/280 days), or 9 calendar months—as calculated from the 1st day of the LMP (last menstrual period) of the woman. It is also cited to as a gestation period consisting of three trimesters, each containing three months. However, these trimesters are not equal, but are determined by different stages of a fetus’ development. The first trimester includes the first 13 weeks of pregnancy, or the first 12 wk of life, the second trimester involves of week number 14 to 26, and the third one extends from weeks 27 to 40.
During the sexual intercourse, a man ejects millions of sperm into the woman's vaginal track and then, these sperm travel in all directions, prompted and motivated by their whip like tails, and many of them swim through the cervix towards the female’s womb. Any one of those million sperm penetrates the ovum and its tail is then shed off. And the remainder of the sperm will provides 50% of the genetic material of the future embryo the other half left for the ovum. The fertilized ovum will then travel along the fallopian tube and arrives in the uterus 4-5 days later. The fluid secreted by the fallopian tube lining will provide it with nourishment during this journey and then the placenta is completely formed and operating by 10 weeks after fertilization. It is between 12 and 20 weeks' pregnancy, the placenta will weigh more than the fetus since the fetal organs are not fully developed for dealing with the process required for nutrition.
Pregnancy signs and symptoms include nausea or vomiting. This is one of the earliest pregnancy symptoms that appear. This is also called more popularly as morning sickness. Nausea occurs due to the ability of sensing the smell and taste of the pregnant woman becomes increased and she can experience the sensation of nausea even with the smell of teas and coffees.
As pregnancy info, increased frequency of urination is another early pregnancy sign and this means that the pregnant woman may have to go to the toilet very frequently including during the night. In addition, the pregnant woman will observe that she is getting tired much early as compared to when she was not bearing child.
Breast enlargement and missed period are the hallmark of being pregnant. The period is missed when the woman is pregnant. Along with soreness and tenderness of the breasts, the woman observes darkening of the areola and nipples. They all are indication of being pregnant.
In order to confirm pregnancy, home pregnancy test i.e. urine pregnancy test is recommended. However, blood can also be examined for detecting pregnancy. Once the pregnancy is confirmed, CBC test, urinary analysis, RH factor and all the tests for sexually transmitted diseases are to be done in order to save the pregnancy.
The child is delivered by two methods. One is normal delivery there nothing is required except a midwife, few basic instruments and the mother. The other one is cesarean section that requires fully equipped operation theater. The pregnant woman’s pregnancy should meet certain criteria in order to undergo cesarean section. For instance, if the child is over healthy, there is multi-pregnancy (more than one or two fetuses), in case of some medical condition where immediate delivery has to be done and many more.
Pregnancy info can be gathered from the internet, health books or simply one can consult obstetrician and they will guide pregnant woman up to a satisfactory level. All in all, Pregnancy info helps knowing the pregnancy, its nutrition, supplements, method to deliver baby and also the precautions to be taken before, during and after delivering the baby.
