http://www.babysafetyzone.com/prenatal-safety/prenatal-development.html Prenatal development - the best way to ensure good prenatal development is to have good prenatal care. en-us Mon, 17 Oct 2005 15:18:58 EDT Mon, 17 Oct 2005 15:18:58 EDT Weblog Editor 2.0 Prenatal development is broken down into three different stages; first trimester, second trimester, and third trimester. Each of these stages last about 3 months and in each stage has certain developmental characteristics. During all of these stages it is extremely important to keep up with prenatal care with your doctor. many women even start seeing their doctor before the time of conception to make sure that their own body is well-equipped for the burden of pregnancy. The trimesters of prenatal development The first trimester starts with conception, when the egg is fertilized. Cells just start to come together and the placenta develops. During this stage the heart begins to form and pump blood to vessels. There is just the start of a neural groove which will eventually become the brain. All of the organs also begin to take shape and preform vital functions. This is the most important stage to be taking prenatal vitamins. By the end of this trimester, little arms and legs will start to move around and kick. The second trimester ushers in the time of the big-headed baby! During this stage much of the lower body is developing much faster than the head, giving the baby a strange appearance in the ultra-sounds. At this stage in prenatal development , little fist can open and close. And now the eyes are fully formed and no longer closed tight. Although some of the ingredients in many prenatal vitamins are most important to take during the first weeks, they should be taken through the breast-feeding stage. During the third trimester the baby can actually live outside of the womb in the case of a premature birth. Everything is coming together at this point and the skull is almost the closest it will be to fused before he/she is born. Now you will moving on from prenatal safety to baby safety! Mon, 17 Oct 2005 15:18:58 EDT