Pregnancy Development in 2nd Week (courtesy : www.pregnancyhut.com)

Even though this is the second week of pregnancy, but in actual, you are not two weeks pregnant. In this period, the body releases an egg. From here the journey of the egg starts. The egg moves from the fallopian tube, to meet your partner’s sperm and then fertilization takes place. Now , this fertilized egg, called as an embryo, continues its traveling to the uterus within three to four days after fertilization.

The embryo is made up of about 150 cells. It is divided into three layers, where each develops in an independent manner. The innermost layer is called the endoderm, which is transformed into the respiratory and digestive system as well as certain glands including the liver, pancreas, thyroid and thymus. The middle one known as the mesoderm, will become bones and cartilage, the circulatory system (heart and blood vessels), the inner skin layer (dermis), muscles, excretory system, loins and genitalia and also the outer covering of the internal organs., while the outer layer also referred as ectoderm provides the brain and nervous system along with the epidermis (skin, hair, nails).

A healthy balanced diet is essential to be considered before conception. It can help to boost your fertility. During pregnancy, the calories intake must be about 2500 extra calories a day, stressing on a variety of nutritious foods. You must reduce the amount of sweets and fats, and look out for salad dressings and cooking oils. For those who drink or smoke or use recreational drugs, it is the best time to quit it now.

Fertilization (courtesy : www.wikibooks.org)

The first week of the pregnancy is considered to be the first day of your last period. This is not the actual pregnancy period, but is the appropriate time when the counting begins This date is used to determine the expected delivery date. A pregnancy period is composed of 40 weeks (or 280 days). Calculate the expected delivery date, by adding three months and 7 days to your first day of the last period. So, for example, if you last period started on June 12th, then your due date would be March 19th. During conception, the fetus is considered to be 2 years old.

During pregnancy, you must take care of your health. The eating habits of the mother really affects your baby’s health directly and indirectly. While trying to get pregnant, you must give proper time to prepare your body for motherhood. Before thinking of becoming pregnant, you should:

Avoid alcohol, drugs and tobacco products, as these lead to birth defects, fetal alcohol syndrome, respiratory problems, low birth weight and other health problems.
Ask the doctor, before taking any prescription and nonprescription drugs, because they might negatively affect the fetus.
Consume such a diet, that contains sufficient amount of vitamins, especially folic acid. Pregnant women should take 400 micrograms of folic acid a day, to reduce the risk of neural tube defects, such as spina bifida.