Pregnancy is a unique period of time in a woman’s life. When you can still boast that your heart beats two whole hearts, despite the fact that this is not some kind of pathology. Despite the fact that during pregnancy, the expectant mother still cannot hold the baby in her arms and look into his face, this period most clearly expresses the very essence of motherhood. A woman carries a small creature in herself, which her body nourishes, warms, and provides oxygen. It is impossible to imagine a closer relationship.
How long does a pregnancy last? The first one begs the simplest answer is “9 months”. Those who were interested in pregnancy issues, read and discussed something with friends, can answer: "40 weeks." And you can remember about the obstetric and true gestational age. All this introduces considerable confusion. So how many weeks give birth?
Obstetric and true term
The obstetric term is the time that began from the beginning of the last menstruation. In fact, in the first days, or even two weeks, the woman is not pregnant yet. It's just that much more convenient to count. What can a doctor ask when a woman comes to see him? The date of conception is usually not so simple to determine. With irregular sex life, this day can be guessed. But if a woman is married or living with a regular partner, then the expected dates will simply be too many. Not everyone is following the state of their body at this moment and trying to determine the onset of ovulation. But the beginning of menstruation everyone remembers, and often record. Conception occurs after this, when ovulation occurs. Most often, the obstetric period differs from the true one by 2 weeks.
There is one point that can be misleading in determining the term. At the beginning of pregnancy, there may be spotting. At this time, it seems to many that menstruation has begun, only for some reason very little blood is released. But this is a completely different phenomenon in the body. It can occur 1-2 times at the beginning of pregnancy and normally disappears quickly.
How many weeks
How many weeks do they give birth? So, the obstetric period, that is, the time from the beginning of the last menstruation to childbirth, is usually 40 weeks, and the true or embryonic period from fertilization to childbirth for most women is 38 weeks. If you count in days, the obstetric period will last 280 days, and the true - 266.
Cycle length and delivery date
The length of the menstrual cycle affects the date of birth, however, doctors usually do not take this into account. Ovulation most often occurs 14 days before the end of the cycle. If in one woman the cycle lasts 24 days, and in the other 36, then the second date of ovulation will shift by 12 days compared with the first. At the same time, they will be predicted the same date of birth. The reality, in how many weeks these women give birth, will be completely different.
Therefore, when determining the gestational age, the doctor must take into account the data of ultrasound, the size and development of the fetus, as well as an increase in the abdomen of a woman.
Prematurity
Should any deviation from these figures be considered a pathology? Of course not. The norms for how many weeks they give birth to healthy children are as follows - from 37 to 42 weeks of obstetric term. A baby is considered premature if it was born no later than 37 weeks of pregnancy. However, prematurity is determined not only by the duration of pregnancy. Prematurely considered children who weigh no more than 2.5 kg.
In addition, they have external features - their skin is reddish and wrinkled, the umbilical cord is lower than in full-term children, there are structural features of the ears. The genitals of such babies are underdeveloped - in boys the testicles have not yet descended into the scrotum, in girls the labia minora are not covered with large. The nails do not yet reach the edge of the phalanges of the fingers. Their behavior is also different - the cry is quiet, movements are sluggish, reflexes are absent, only sucking and swallowing can be observed. Sometimes a baby born before 37 weeks may weigh more than 2.5 kg and not have all of these symptoms. Then doctors can recognize him as full-term - his body is formed and ready for a collision with the environment. True, if the baby was born before 31 weeks, he is recognized as premature in any case.
Sometimes, on the contrary, babies born on time have signs of prematurity. How many weeks give birth to non-viable babies? If the baby was born earlier than 24 weeks and weighs less than 500 g, this case is not attributed to preterm birth, but to a miscarriage. Such kids are almost impossible to go out. However, modern medicine does not stand still. Children weighing 500 g or more, thanks to the efforts of doctors, still survive.
Portability
If the baby is born 2 weeks after the deadline, it is considered to be postponed. Such children have “bath” feet and hands - their skin wrinkles, as after a long stay in water. After all, primordial grease ceases to protect the skin of the baby. On the body, the skin may appear dry and flaky, sometimes greenish in color. Oddly enough, such children are not larger, but worse than those born on time.
Many women who have had a prolonged pregnancy try to bring the birth closer with folk remedies. They walk up the stairs, go on long and active walks, have a violent sex life with their spouse, stimulate nipples. Sometimes birth can be caused by hanging clothes or curtains - the load with this pose affects the woman’s body. But all this is better to do, having consulted with the doctor in advance. The fact is that the cervix should be ready for childbirth. If she has not “matured”, and the birth has begun, only Caesarean will help.
Doctors resort to artificial induction of labor if there are signs that are dangerous for the child. In amniotic fluid, meconium can be detected. They may show a complete lack of lubrication, which means that the baby's skin is not protected. The baby's head may not be surrounded by amniotic fluid at all, and the placenta is rapidly aging and does not provide the baby with enough oxygen.
Why are many born prematurely?
Often, when interviewing their relatives and acquaintances, women may find that a large number of children were born 2 weeks before the deadline. What is the mistake of doctors? Any trend in the body of pregnant women and their children? This may be due to various factors. For example, with the floor. How many weeks can I give birth? 2 weeks before the deadline, that is, 38 weeks or later - such terms are included in the normal range. Children usually have normal body weight and height.
Sometimes people say that girls are born earlier. "We are always in a hurry - first to be born, then to get married." It is difficult to find reliable statistics on how many weeks girls and boys give birth. Some evidence does say that girls are born on average a little earlier than boys. Their birth weight is usually less. In childhood and adolescence, the same trend continues. Girls grow faster, they have puberty earlier, but they stop growth earlier.
First and second children
There is also the idea that the second pregnancy is 7-10 days shorter than the first. There are physiological prerequisites for this. After the first birth, the pelvic muscles become more plastic, and the cervix smoothes faster. True, this is far from always the case. If you interview women about how many weeks they gave birth to a second child, not everyone will answer that the second pregnancy was shorter than the first. Indeed, many other factors affect its duration. For example, the size of the fetus. And children who were born second and later are often larger.
By the way, the second pregnancy is different from the first. The stomach usually becomes visible earlier, and the woman earlier feels the fetal movement. In addition, the stomach drops below. This can cause inconvenience - frequent urination, increased load on the back. At the same time, there will be less discomfort during breathing and digestive problems, such as heartburn. Repeated births usually are easier. A woman is already familiar with this process and knows how to behave.
Genetic predisposition
It happens that a woman has a tendency to an early birth. If you find out from her how many weeks the first child was born, you can find out that he was born about 38 weeks. Then the probability of having a second child before forty weeks is also high. Sometimes the propensity for early childbirth is transmitted genetically. Therefore, it is best to ask your mother, and if you have, then grandmother and sisters, what time they gave birth.
Multiple pregnancy
Multiple pregnancy is considered, starting with twins. It is characterized by early childbirth. How many weeks give birth to twins? Twins can be born at a standard term, and can be born in 34-35 weeks. At the same time, the babies will lag behind other children in height and weight, because it would be very difficult for the mother to carry large babies. However, their body will be already formed by this time, and they will not have signs of prematurity.
How many weeks can I give birth if there are even more children? During pregnancy, triplets and a large number of children, which happens even less often, the likelihood of giving birth on time is very small. And phenomenal cases when 5 children are born right away are usually accompanied by prematurity. Some of these babies were born at only 26 weeks, for example, girls from the Artamkin family, who are currently healthy and are in school.