12 Weeks Pregnant

At 12 weeks pregnant your baby will look like a tiny human being. It is about 6cm long and weighs about 15g. It has arms and legs with fingers and toes and more defined facial features. The body is straighter and the first bone tissue appears.

The face is formed with a chin, high forehead and small button nose. The eyes are developed and although they are shut tight with sealed eyelids, they now show reflexive movements. The ears are visible but are still small.

The tiny brain is now forming neural pathways and the fetus is starting to squirm around, although you can't feel it yet because there is still a high proportion of amniotic fluid all around it.

The arms and legs can move freely and if you have a scan at this stage you may see them moving, which is really exciting! The skin is still permeable to amniotic fluid. The nails on the fingers and toes are starting to grow and if the palm is touched, the fingers will curl.



At around 12 weeks the placenta has achieved its final shape and takes over from the yolk sac to become the baby’s life support system. The placenta is much larger than the baby at this stage. After its initial rapid enlargement the placenta grows slowly and by the time the baby is born it will weigh about one sixth of the baby’s weight.

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If your doctor or midwife palpates your abdomen now, s/he will be able to feel the top of the uterus, the fundus. If you've been experiencing morning sickness or general nausea, it will hopefully start to ease off now. It's good to know, too, that you're now getting past the most risky time for miscarriage.

Your food intake now will determine how well your baby will grow, so it's a great time to look at Pregnancy Nutrition.

Soon you will probably start to feel you need to wear looser waistbands and may want to begin thinking about some new clothes so that you can look good and feel comfortable at the same time.

If uou have an ultrasound scan at 12 weeks pregnant, you could expect it to look something like this video clip:

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For more information on pregnancy stages Click 12 weeks pregnant