Start of Pregnancy Week 5 : Day 15 with 251 days to go

This is an interesting week. The primitive streak is now starting to develop. What is the primitive streak many of you will be saying? Well, it is the fore runner of the brain and the spinal cord.

The primitive streak will form a groove through which cells will migrate to form three layers of tissue: endoderm, mesoderm and the ectoderm, from which all of the baby's organs will develop from.

The bottom layer, the endoderm will develop the glands, lung linings, tongue, bladder, digestive tract, tonsils, urethra and associated glands.
The middle layer, the mesoderm will form the muscles, bones, heart, lungs, spleen, blood cells, and the reproductive and excretory systems.
The top layer, the ectoderm will form the skin, nails, hair, eye lens, nose, mouth, anus, tooth enamel, pituitary gland, mammary glands, and all parts of the nervous system.
There are another important set of cells which will be migrating to the baby's head to form what is called the notochord, this will give rise to form the vertebrae, or the bones of the spine. The cells in the notochord will release a chemical that will cause a dramatic change in the size of the cells in the ectoderm.

The first steps will start to take place in forming the baby's primitive heart this week. The heart tubes will begin to fuse together and the baby's first blood cells will begin to form this week.

Your Health and Nutrition:

It is much better to steam your vegetables in stead of boiling them in order to maximize the amount of nutrition your body can take in. Carrots them selves are an excellent source of vitamins during pregnancy.

Interesting Pregnancy Fact : By the end of this week, your baby will be measuring about 0.04 an 0.06 inches from head to tail.