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Weight gain during pregnancy by months, poor weight gain during pregnancy
Gynecologists leading a pregnancy carefully monitor changes in the body of the expectant mother. Weight gain during pregnancy is the most important criterion of well-being by which doctors assess the condition of a woman and a fetus. The body weight of a pregnant woman varies unevenly and depends on the period.
Weight gain during pregnancy by months
The first weeks of pregnancy have little or no effect on weight gain. For some women, toxicosis even affects negatively in terms of gaining body weight. During the first trimester, accompanied by constant nausea and morning vomiting, such women even lose weight. As long as the body gets used to the changes, there are no significant changes associated with weight. The expectant mother recovers by no more than 3 kg in the first 4-2 months, and women who are fragile by nature are even less.
Insufficient or excessive weight gain during pregnancy is dangerous for the health of the mother and fetus
With the beginning of the second trimester, the situation changes. Every week, a woman will gain 280-300 g, for a month the increase will be 1 kg. For the entire third trimester, the daily weight gain on the scales will be about 50 g, that is, weekly the scales will show about 350-400 g more.
In gynecology, it is customary to observe the development of pregnancy not by months, but by weeks. Therefore, weight gain during pregnancy by months can be roughly represented as follows:
- the first 4 months (17 weeks) – 2,3 kg;
- 5-5,5 months (from 17th to 23rd week) – 1,5 kg;
- 6th month (from 23rd to 27th week) – 2 kg;
- 7th month (from 27rd to 31th week) – 2 kg;
- 8th month (from 31rd to 35th week) – 2 kg;
- 9th month (from 35th to 40th week) – 1,3 kg
Of course, these are average values. The actual increase in body weight depends on many factors, including body type. Moreover, fragile asthenic women gain weight more than initially full ones. In general, during pregnancy, weight gain normally varies between 10-12 kg. But the mother of twins for childbirth can weigh 18-20 kg more than before conception.
What makes up the “extra” weight of a pregnant woman? Let’s take the average indicators:
- fruit – 3 kg;
- amniotic fluid – 1-1,5 liters;
- uterus – 1 kg;
- accumulation of circulating fluid – 4-5 liters.
The last indicator is very important. Doctors call it compensating volume. It is a natural defense mechanism that provides the female body with the ability to cope with blood loss during labor.
Doctors are quite calm about sudden, within 1,5 kg, weight jumps if they occur within a short time. This can happen literally in a day: overeating, lack of stool, and severe fatigue affect. Such kilograms are lost as quickly as they appear. But if the weight has risen sharply in general in a month, this is a sign of trouble.
Edema, weight gain exponentially, exceeding the upper limit by 10-13 points is a serious reason for hospitalization.
Why is poor weight gain during pregnancy dangerous?
Obstetricians evaluate both too little and too much weight equally negatively. If the pregnancy proceeds perfectly, no leaps occur: the body of the expectant mother builds up mass smoothly and evenly.
If a woman has gained less than 8 kg, this is bad. It is strictly forbidden to starve while carrying a fetus. If a pregnant woman does not eat well and does not have enough nutrients in her body, there is a high probability of a miscarriage. When the balance needle does not move or falls regularly in the 2nd or 3rd trimesters, you should immediately sound the alarm. Poor weight gain during pregnancy is a serious risk of the birth of an infant with intrauterine pathology, mental or physical. In addition, this may signal that the same compensating volume of fluid – circulating blood – is not accumulating, that is, something is wrong.
However, being overweight is also bad. If a woman gains more than 2 kg within a month at any stage of pregnancy, urgent measures need to be taken. Excessive weight gain is fraught with many dangers:
- the development of diabetes mellitus;
- fetal hypoxia;
- pressure increase;
- varicosity;
- early aging of the placenta;
- late toxicosis.
All this can lead to complicated childbirth, death of the mother or child. Therefore, it is important to be observed by a gynecologist throughout the entire period of pregnancy, without missing scheduled examinations.
Weight gain during pregnancy is individual, but at the same time has clearly limited values. Going beyond the upper or lower limits of the norm is equally dangerous for the health and life of the mother and baby.