Determine The Gender Of Your Baby

It’s not always easy to work out an accurate baby due date, especially if it’s the first time you’ve been pregnant. With some simple arithmetic though, you should be able to calculate baby’s birth date to within a couple of weeks. Here’s how to do it.

The average length of a normal pregnancy is 40 weeks. This is calculated from the first day of the last period, not from the date of conception, as it is hardly possible to know with any certainty when conception took place. Providing your periods are fairly regular, you should have a good idea of the date that baby will be due.

There is an easy way to calculate this. Simply add 7 days to the start of your last period and then add 9 months. There are also pregnancy calculators on the internet which make this calculation easier.

Of course not every pregnancy is going to go like clockwork. Babies can be born under 37 weeks which is a preterm birth, or over 42 weeks making them late. If you suffer with irregular periods, then calulating your baby due date is not quite so easy. There is a test called a pregnancy ultrasound which can help.

If you are going to have a pregnancy ultrasound to find out your due date, it need to be done between 6 and 12 weeks to be accurate. An ultrasound is a completely safe test that uses sound waves to form an image of the developing baby. An ultrasound operator can calculate the baby’s gestational age by measuring certain body parts, for example the circumference of the baby’s head.

A pregnancy ultrasound is also able to find any potential problems with the pregnancy such as ectopic pregnancy or placenta praevia where instant intervention may be necessary . Ultrasounds can also find potential health problems with the baby.

What happens if your baby is premature?

The chances are much better today for a preterm birth (before 37 weeks). Paediatric care has come a long way in the last 10 years. Babies born between 34 and 37 weeks have an almost 100% survival rate.

Having said this, it’s still best if your baby can go full term. Preemie babies may suffer from respiratory problems and increased risk of infection. So is there anything you can do to decrease the chance of having a preemie baby?

Pregnancy and alcohol don’t mix so please don’t drink alcohol or smoke while pregnant. Make sure your food intake is nutritious and sufficient to maintain both you and your baby. Try and avoid stress if humanly possible and lastly, make sure you obtain quality prenatal care to check everything is ok at every stage of the pregnancy.

So working out your baby due date let’s you be organized for the birth of your baby both physically and emotionally. If you’re experiencing difficulty in calculating when your baby is due, your obstetrician is sure to be able to help.

Tags: Pregnancy //