Pregnancy & Infancy

scroll down

Pregnancy & Infancy Objectives

List key stages of development after fertilization.
Describe impacts on a woman’s body during pregnancy.
Provide characteristics of a newborn, including structures and behaviors.

This section takes a closer look at some of the changes that occur during pregnancy, as well as soon after birth.

In the previous section we explored the reproductive organs that produce sperm and eggs. We are starting this section with a sperm fertilizing an egg.

After fertilization, the fertilized egg quickly divides to produce more cells. From the first module, division of one cell to produce two identical cells is called _____.

The new mass of cells (morula) is moving down the fallopian tube into the uterus. The blastula implants into the endometrium lining of the uterus. The mother’s health is important throughout a pregnancy, including the first trimester, as explained in the next video.

During pregnancy and infancy, a parent may be the most educated they will ever be. This video explains why.

Third Trimester

Pregnancy has a significant impact on a woman’s body, as this video explains.

Model Pregnancy

Since hormones fluctuate during pregnancy to support implantation of the blastula, development of the embryo and feeding of the fetus; many organ systems are impacted. We tend to hear the most about neurological impacts, but many other impacts occur.

These illustrations are not scaled to size, but show the degree of outward physical changes that occur as an embryo matures into a fetus. Internal changes can be even more dramatic, including organs beginning function for the first time. The mother’s nutrition, medications, and other aspects of health can impact various developmental milestones.

Similarly the fetus is impacting the mother as it utilizes nutrients, produces wastes, and begins to move late in pregnancy.

Prenatal support is critical, especially for individuals who do not have prior experiences with pregnancy and may have difficulty from discerning between “normal” changes and more significant issues.

Birth has a significant impact on both mother and baby. This video describes some of the things you may observe with a newborn.

We may know to be careful with a baby’s head, but there are a myriad of other pieces of knowledge that can assist new parents so they don’t have to learn “from scratch.” Education during infancy is critical and new parents often need assistance with the complex and challenging work they have ahead.