When I first found out I was pregnant, I kinda knew that I would not wanna know the sex of my baby. I thought it would be such a lovely, old-fashioned surprise that way. Back when technology wasn't this advanced, parents-to-be had no way of knowing their baby's gender and it was fun because it left people guessing and speculating and you could even have bet going on! That's what I had in mind with our baby. I thought it would be such fun to get everyone to place their bets and then we would divide all the money among those who had guessed correctly. But noooooo. The hubster felt it would be better for us to know so that we could start picking out the baby's name and buying clothes etc.
On 16 June, at my routine doctor's check up at SGH, my gynae asked if I would like to know the baby's sex and I said yes. And he told me that he was 80% sure that we were going to have a BOY! And on the 18th July at our detailed 20 week anomaly scan, the sonographer and our gynaecologist confirmed that I was carrying a boy. Both of us were really happy. Then again, we would have been happy with a boy or a girl as long as the baby was healthy. I had read on a few websites that boy babies tend to be born heavier than girl babies. I wonder if there's any truth in that.
Anyways, just thought I'd share some cool and interesting things that I learned about pregnancy and stuff from reading my pregnancy books.
Interesting Pregnancy Facts
1. The sex of a baby is determined by whether the sperm that fertilizes the egg caries the X or Y version of chromosome 23. That actually means that the sex of the baby is determined by the father and not by the mother.
2. Babies can apparently cry in the womb.
3. During pregnancy, a woman's uterus expands to about 500 times its normal size and will shrink back to its pre-pregnancy size by 6 weeks postpartum.
4. During pregnancy, a woman's internal organs such as intestines, kidneys and liver get shifted around to make way for the expanding uterus and growing baby. This often causes heartburn and indigestion.
5. When pregnant, a woman's body produces up to 50% more blood to cater to the needs of the baby.
6. A pregnant woman can expect to gain anywhere from 8-15 kg during pregnancy without having to eat extra or increase their daily caloric intake. This is because the body naturally gains weight due to extra blood, amniotic fluid, the weight of the baby, the weight of the placenta, the weight of the enlarged uterus, water retention and maternal fat stores which are used for breastfeeding.
7. A woman will lose between 5-8 kg immediately after giving birth after losing the weight of the baby, placenta, blood and amniotic fluid.
8. A woman's breasts can increase up to 3 cup sizes during pregnancy in preparation for breastfeeding.
9. A woman's heart has to work harder during pregnancy due to the 40-50% increase in blood supply.
10. Babies heads usually turn and descend into the birth canal during weeks 34-37 to prepare for labour and birth.
11. Babies get hiccups while in utero and their mothers are able to feel this sensation.
12. Women with an anterior placenta tend to feel baby's kicks and movements slightly later than women with posterior placentas. This is because the placenta acts as a cushion between baby and stomach. However, by week 28, most women will be able to feel strong baby movements regardless of the position of the placenta.
13. Most miscarriages occur in the first trimester during weeks 0-13.
14. Babies can hear sounds and recognize their mother's voice by week 22. They can also get startled by external noises.
15. The task of producing breast milk requires a lot of energy and can burn up to 500 calories per day!
16. Recent studies have shown that pregnancy stretch marks are mainly hereditary. If your mother had stretch marks while pregnant, chances are you'll get them too.
17. After a baby is born and the umbilical cord is cut, an umbilical stump remains and usually drops off on its own after two weeks.
