The eighth week marks the beginning of a very busy developmental stage. Between now and 20 weeks, your baby will be growing rapidly, and body parts that formed in the first few weeks of life (such as the heart and brain) will become more specialized and complicated. Right now, the teeth and palate are forming, while the ears continue to develop. The fetus' skin is paper thin, and veins are clearly visible.
You're in the throes of the first trimester, when many women complain of common pregnancy aches and pains. Keeping food down may be next to impossible, thanks to morning sickness, caused in part by the pregnancy hormones in your body. You may also need to urinate a lot more often than usual -- your growing uterus is pressing on your bladder, and hormones are affecting the balance of fluid in your body. All will diminish as your pregnancy continues.
Exercise is good for you. Check out our fitness section to find out what forms of exercise are safe during pregnancy.
- Note: Experts say every baby develops differently -- even in utero. These fetal development pages are designed to give a general idea of how a fetus grows in the womb.
6 weeks pregnant
8 weeks pregnant
Last reviewed: August 2009
ReferencesThis article was written using the following sources:
Hadlock FP, Yogesh PS, Kanon DJ, Lindsey JV. 1992. Fetal crown-rump length: Re-evaluation of relation to menstrual age (5-18 weeks) with high-resolution real-time US. Radiology 182(2):501-5
Hill M. 2009. Development week by week. University of New South Wales Embryology. embryology.med.unsw.edu.au [Accessed August 2009]
Medline. 2009. Fetal development. Medline Plus Medical Encyclopedia. www.nlm.nih.gov [Accessed August 2009]
Visembryo. 2006. Pregnancy timeline. The Visible Embryo. www.visembryo.com [Accessed August 2009]