What Does an 18 Week Pregnant Belly Look Like?

Every person and every pregnancy is different so you can̵7;t follow any hard-set rules on how big your belly or baby will get during your pregnancy. However, some factors can be considered when you want to get a rough idea of how your body is going to look at the 18-week mark. Whether your belly is perfectly round or showing some extra love, you̵7;re protecting and nourishing that little one until he̵7;s ready to enter the world.

  1. Size of Uterus

    • At week 18, your uterus has popped out of your pelvis and is slowly expanding up and out. The WebMD website states that your uterus is about the size of a cantaloupe at this stage of your pregnancy. If you gently poke around your belly with your fingertips, you should be able to feel the top of the uterus right below your belly button. At some point between now and about 20 weeks, your health care provider may start measuring and recording your fundal height ̵1; the distance from your pubic hair line to the top of the uterus.

    Weight Gain

    • Your pre-pregnancy weight and the amount of weight you have put on during your pregnancy are important contributing factors in how big your belly is at the 18-week mark. Even though your uterus is cantaloupe-sized at this point, extra body fat may make your belly appear larger and more pronounced. The Mayo Clinic recommends gaining about a pound each week during the second and third trimesters, which equals out to about an extra 300 to 400 calories a day.

    Stretch Marks

    • At this point, you may or may not have stretch marks on your expanding middle. Usually stretch marks show up during the third trimester, if at all, but can appear sooner with rapid weight gain. At first, a stretch mark will appear pink and can be itchy. As a stretch mark gets bigger, it will turn reddish or purplish. Luckily, as you lose your baby weight after pregnancy, the stretch marks will fade and become white or silver. To give your body a fighting chance against stretch marks, make sure you̵7;re drinking plenty of water throughout the day and slathering on some pregnant belly oil or cocoa butter daily.

    Size of the Baby

    • The size of your little one helps determine how big your belly has gotten. According to the Mayo Clinic website, you baby will be measuring in at about 5-1/2 inches from head to rump at week 18 and weigh around seven ounces at this point. As he grows and your uterus expands, it pushes your internal organs up and out of the way. So the belly you see is not just all baby -- it's also your organs, uterus and fluids. So even though your baby isn't huge at this point, you've probably busted out some pregnancy pants to accommodate for your little baby bump.

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