Welcome to your week 30 pregnancy update where we outline the changes you and your baby are experiencing.

Your Baby

At week 30 baby is around 40 cm long and roughly  1320 grams. This week your baby’s bone marrow will begin functioning. The bone marrow’s function is to make all of the blood cells for your baby. First up in the production area is the red blood cells. The red blood is what carries the oxygen and nutrients through the veins and arteries. The bone marrow won’t be making white blood cells or platelets for a few more weeks.

Now that you’re in the final trimester, your little baby will start to kick and punch in more noticeable places. Be prepared for your baby to kick you in the ribs and perhaps even make punches in the front of your belly that you can actually start to see. Oh and did we mention the kicks and pressure on your pelvic floor? Baby will basically start making herself felt in all kinds of places now that she’s growing bigger and finding it hard to do the acrobatics that used to keep her occupied.

From this week, the fuzzy lanugo hair all over your growing baby’s body will start to disappear. The fine hairs all over her skin have been keeping her warm and helping all that waterproof vernix stick to her skin. In the next few weeks, these patches will start to rub off while the hair on her head grows thicker. Her little toe nails and fingernails will also be growing and some newborns will require a manicure in the early days after birth because their nails are so long.

Many babies maintain a head-down position in the uterus from now on – though don’t be alarmed if your baby is still squiggling around rather than being locked and loaded in the pelvis. The head-down position is the most common and straightforward position for birth, but some babies refuse to get into the right position with some being born bottom-first, also known as ‘breech’.

Just like adults, all babies are different and develop at varying rates in the womb. This information gives a general idea of your baby’s development and progress.

The Mum Report

At this point in your pregnancy, your blood volume is double what it normally is pre-pregnancy as your body works to look after the two of you. Your blood is nourishing your baby and feeding the placenta with the all important vitamins, minerals and nutrients from your system.

Your LMC will check your blood pressure at each pregnancy visit to make sure it is not abnormally high (a condition called pre-eclampsia). It is not unusual to have at least one high result at some point during their pregnancy and does not does not necessarily indicate a health problem.

If you haven’t already, now is a good time to start planning what you will take with you to hospital or the birth centre or, in the case of a home birth, what you will need at home. Gathering supplies can be very exciting and make your baby’s birth feel closer! What item/s are you most looking forward to getting?

Read More:

Planning a home birth
Writing  a birth plan
Breastfeeding positions
labour signs