Embryo at 6- 7 weeks: There is now a large bulge where your baby’s heart is and a bump for the head because the brain is developing. The heart begins to beat and can be seen beating on an ultrasound scan. Dimples on the side of the head will become the ears and there are thickenings where the eyes will be. On the body, bumps are forming that will become muscles and bones. And small swellings (called ‘limb buds’) show where the arms and legs are growing. At seven weeks, the embryo has grown to about 10mm long from head to bottom. This measurement is called the ‘crown–rump length’.
At 6 weeks the embryo actual size from head to bottom is about 8mm. At 7 weeks the embryo actual size from head to bottom is about 10mm.
Fetus at 8-9 weeks
Your baby’s face is slowly forming. The eyes are more obvious and have some color in them. The fetus has a mouth with a tongue. There are the beginnings of hands and feet, with ridges where the fingers and toes will be. The major internal organs – the heart, brain, lungs, kidneys, liver and gut – are all developing. At nine weeks, the baby has grown to about 22mm long from head to bottom.
The umbilical cord
The umbilical cord is a baby’s lifeline. It is the link between you and your baby. Blood circulates through the cord, carrying oxygen and food to the baby and carrying waste away again.
The placenta
The placenta is attached to the lining of the uterus and separates your baby’s circulation from your circulation. In the placenta, oxygen and food from your bloodstream pass into your baby’s bloodstream and are carried to your baby along the umbilical cord. Antibodies that give resistance to infection pass to your baby in the same way. The drugs can also pass to your baby this way.
The amniotic sac
Inside the uterus, the baby floats in a bag of fluid called the amniotic sac. Before or during labor the sac, or ‘membranes’, break and the fluid drains out. This is known as the ‘waters breaking’.
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