By now your baby has learned to breathe and is inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid. This will help their lungs develop and grow. Facial muscles are more developed so they may have different expressions like squinting or frowning. They are becoming more active and can kick or even somersault!

Your baby’s development

Your baby is now around 11cm long.

Although you may not have felt any movement yet, they can turn their head, wriggle, and exercise all 40 sets of muscles.

Your baby can hold their head erect, and the development of facial muscles allows for a variety of expressions, such as squinting and frowning. Their eyes are still closed but they can sense light from the outside world.

Your Body

Many women experience food cravings during pregnancy. Cravings may be specific, for peaches of a certain ripeness, for example. Or more general, such as an appetite for hot, spicy foods. As long as your cravings are for relatively healthy foods, you can satisfy them without any concern.

Be sure to include plenty of variety in your diet as well as the foods you crave. Providing a steady supply of nutrients now affects your baby’s ongoing development as well as their long-term health.

Some women experience a craving known as pica. This is a hunger for non-food substances, including plaster and paint chips from walls, clay, coal, washing powder and chalk. It’s thought that pica may be triggered by a mineral deficiency, but the substance craved doesn’t always correlate to the mother’s mineral levels. If you have unusual non-food cravings, discuss them with your doctor.

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Please note: These pregnancy week-by-week articles, are meant to give you a general sense of the growth and development going on within you. However, it’s important to remember that every baby develops differently, even during pregnancy.