Interesting Facts About Pregnancy


We’ve all heard the pregnancy-related old wives tales, but there are truly a lot of fascinating facts about those magically wild nine months you still might not know, even if you’re currently carrying a baby in your belly. 

Right now 4% of women in the U.S. are pregnant. And, no matter when your baby makes an entrance, while it might feel like forever, there’s no way you’ll trump the world’s longest human pregnancy at a little over a year long. 

It’s not just the belly that grows in pregnancy, a woman’s uterus expands to more than 500 times its normal size. In addition to her uterus, a woman’s feet and heart increase in size during pregnancy. Plus, women have about 50% more blood by week 20 of their pregnancy than they did before they conceived. 

As if those weren’t enough changes, when a pregnant woman is full term, her placenta will produce more estrogen in a day than a typical woman would produce in three years!

Moving on, to the incredible way our bodies work, did you know that if a mother suffers organ damage during pregnancy, the baby in the womb sends stem cells to repair the damaged organ? 

Or, did you know the force inside a woman's uterus from pushing with a contraction translates to 397 pounds of pressure per square foot? That’s 2.8 pounds of pressure per square inch on her baby's head.

And, that funny linea nigrea line that pops up during pregnancy was actually always there. Pregnancy hormones changed the pigmentation to make the linea nigrea visible.

While there are plenty of amazing facts about the developing baby (like it’s fingerprints are set within the first trimester of pregnancy), there are plenty of unwelcome side effects a mother can experience too. But, the fact of the matter is, every way you look at, every bit of pregnancy is a true miracle.

Was there anything that surprised you about your first pregnancy? We’d love to hear from you!


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