With 19 weeks down, you're inbound pregnancy month v.

Get set for some exciting pregnancy milestones, similar feeling baby'due south first kicks if you haven't already and the 20-week ultrasound, or anatomy scan, where y'all'll go to come across your infant up close.

Your Babe at Week 19

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At half a pound and six inches long, your baby is about the size of a juicy mango. And that's pretty sweetness!

On the development docket this week: a total baby torso wrap. Your piffling ane gets a head-to-toe coating of vernix caseosa, a white cheesy-looking substance fabricated up of lanugo (that downy hair), oil from his glands, and dead skin cells. Maybe non a recipe for your favorite spa treatment, only merely the right 1 for your fetus.

This waterproof mixture protects your babe'southward pare from his 24/7 bath — the amniotic fluid — and lubricates the nascency canal. Without information technology, baby would wait positively prune-y at birth and would take a much tougher time getting out the door. Don't exist surprised if you lot see vernix remnants on your newborn correct after commitment, especially if he makes an early on debut.

On the looks side, your baby's monkey-like appearance of yester-week is yesterday'southward news now that his legs have gone through a growth spurt and are finally in proportion to his arms. Those longer legs, coupled with the strengthening of cartilage into bone, will make your little one'southward kicks and jabs more than powerful.

Add to that the newly-formed neurons that are sending amend commanding messages from the encephalon to the muscles and you've got a formula for stronger, meaner, and more controlled movements, allowing your acrobat to take his body for some serious test-drives — and for you to get-go feeling them. In the coming weeks you'll experience plenty of flutters, kicks, jabs, twists, stretches, and punches. And no matter when you begin feeling them or what they feel similar, all your babe's movements are jump to exist moving.

At a Glance

Skin coating

Your baby'southward sensitive skin is at present covered in vernix caseosa, a greasy, white, cheese-like blanket that protects his pare from being wrinkled at birth.

Just breathe

Your baby's lungs are developing, with the chief airways (called bronchioles) starting time to form this week.

Feel that boot?

You may be able to feel baby motility for the first time this week, but don't panic if y'all don't. You will before long!

nineteen weeks pregnant is how many months?

If you're 19 weeks meaning, you're in month 5 of your pregnancy. Only iv months left to go! Even so have questions? Here'due south some more information on how weeks, months and trimesters are broken down in pregnancy.

How big is my baby at 19 weeks?

Six inches long this week and merely over a one-half pound in weight, your baby has gone through a scrap of a growth spurt.

Vernix develops

Your footling ane may have a cheesy varnish this calendar week.

Say what? Y'all read that right — a protective substance called vernix caseosa (vernix is the Latin word for "varnish"; caseosa means "cheese") now covers your fetus' skin. Information technology'southward greasy, white and made upwards of that downy hair known as lanugo, oil from your infant's glands and dead skin cells.

This waxy "cheese" may not sound too appealing, but information technology'southward there for good reason: Vernix protects your babe'due south sensitive skin from the surrounding amniotic fluid. Without it, he'd look very wrinkled at birth — sort of what you lot'd expect like if you soaked in a bathroom for nine months.

The vernix sheds as commitment approaches, though some babies — especially those born early on — will notwithstanding be covered with it at nativity, so you might go a look at your baby's offset anti-wrinkle foam.

Your Body at Week nineteen

19 weeks pregnant woman

Leg cramps

There's naught like getting into bed at the terminate of a long, exhausting day — especially when yous're pregnant. Aching for a good night's slumber — literally, if your dorsum'southward been acting up again — you throw back the covers and prepare to happily drift into dreamland.

But if yous're like many expecting moms, something may be keeping yous awake tonight — too what color to paint the plant nursery: leg cramps.

These painful spasms that radiate up and down your calves are very mutual during the second and third trimester. While these cramps can occur during the day, you'll notice them — oh, baby, volition yous discover them! — more than at night.

No one knows for sure what causes them, though there are plausible theories aplenty. It could exist that your leg muscles are just drawn from carrying around all the extra weight of pregnancy. Or that the vessels that carry blood to and from your legs are compressed by your growing uterus at 19 weeks pregnant.

There'southward also speculation that information technology may be somehow related to diet or not beingness fully hydrated, though this hunch hasn't been substantiated past studies.

Whatsoever the crusade, you'll need a quick set up when a leg balk does strike — especially when information technology'due south standing (or lying) between you and a good night'southward sleep. So here's i for you: Straighten your leg and gently flex your ankle and toes back toward your shins.

Feeling babe's kicks

Your sister said infant kicked past this signal in pregnancy — and and so did your all-time friend — but and then far, you oasis't felt a matter. Except those gas bubbles this morning … those were gas, weren't they?

Maybe, maybe not. Those offset tiny kicks can be felt many different ways — generally starting between week eighteen and week 22, though it can be a week or 2 later on if this is your first pregnancy.

Sometimes you might feel like something is swimming within you (which it is!), while other times those first fetal movements may feel more like bufferflies in your tum.

Once your baby grows bigger, you'll be able to easily tell what those niggling kicks experience like, and so there won't be any mistaking them for something else. Learn more about fetal move during pregnancy.

Pregnancy Symptoms Week 19

Increased appetite

Having a hard time staying away from the fridge (and cupboards and pantry)? Keep tempting junk foods out of the house and instead fill your kitchen with nutritious goodies — but practise occasionally allow yourself to indulge in some treats and so that you don't stop up bingeing on them later on. Read More than

Stretch marks

It's estimated that almost 90 percent of women develop stretch marks during pregnancy, so you're not alone. While there is no proven cure, moisturizers such as cocoa butter can help ease the dryness and itching associated with stretched peel. Read More than

Constipation

If yous can't seem to become regular, take a look at your supplements and medications: Some of them, such as iron, can make constipation worse. Ask your practitioner to help you come up with some alternatives until your digestive system gets back on rail. Read More

Faintness or dizziness

Your growing uterus may put pressure on your claret vessels — amid other parts of your body — reducing claret menstruation to your brain and causing you lot to feel light-headed. Even though dizziness is common, don't ignore information technology — take it like shooting fish in a barrel and sit or lie downward every bit soon equally you start to feel woozy then that you lot don't hurt yourself or the baby. Read More

Backaches

As your uterus grows, you may find your center of gravity shifting forward, putting extra force per unit area on your lower back. Avoid straining your back further by letting others elevator heavy loads for you lot. If you lot absolutely must lift something, stabilize yourself by assuming a wide stance, bend at the knees, not at the waist, and slowly elevator with your arms and legs, not your back. Read More than

Stuffy nose

Is the swelling in your nasal passages making it difficult for you to exhale? Here'due south how to accident your nose without damaging nasal membranes and causing a nosebleed: Use your thumb to close 1 nostril and accident gently out the other side. Read More than

Tips for You This Week

Ask about yeast infections

With so much going on down there already, the terminal thing y'all demand is an itchy yeast infection when you're pregnant. Unfortunately, you're peculiarly likely to get them during pregnancy, thank you in part to higher estrogen levels that cause an overgrowth of yeast.

Another downside: Yeast infections are harder to control during this time. Talk to your doctor about the best treatment.

Consider support hose

If you're struggling with edema, or swelling, yous might find it useful to invest in a pair of back up hose. Total pantyhose (with extra tummy room) or knee- or thigh-highs that aren't tight on pinnacle are good choices. Put them on in the morning before the daily swelling starts so they tin do their chore more than effectively.

Also helpful for edema, as well as for leg and back pain during pregnancy: a comfy pair of shoes.

Rethink 3D ultrasounds

Information technology's tempting to volume an appointment for a 3D or 4D sonogram at your local prenatal portrait center, especially if you've seen those stunning in-utero baby photos and videos online.

Merely fifty-fifty though there is no reliable scientific evidence showing that ultrasounds are harmful to a developing fetus, the potential risks of the technology are unclear. The American Higher of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) says that ultrasounds should only be performed past qualified medical professionals — and for medical reasons. So steer clear of the elective ones for now, no affair how tempting they wait.

Increment your fiber intake — gradually

Eating a good for you amount of fiber can aid yous become when you accept to get. The downside: Adding too much fiber to your diet too rapidly can trigger bloating, cramping and gas (and allow's face it, you probably already have enough of that).

If you're trying to fit in more than fiber than always, increase your intake slowly and gently — for example, a sprinkle of chia seeds in your breakfast cereal or a snack of trail mix in the afternoon — so that your body has time to adjust to its new normal.

Plump up your pillows

You may not have snored in the past, but now that y'all're meaning, you can't seem to become a good nighttime'southward sleep.

Usually, snoring during pregnancy is more abrasive than serious (it'southward usually acquired by an uptick in nasal congestion, which tin start around week xvi), but occasionally, it can be caused by a chronic status called obstructive sleep apnea. Enquire your wellness care provider nearly it and go tips on what to do for relief.

Brand a sandwich

Wraps, paninis, double-deckers — no matter what blazon of sandwich you lot require, make it a healthy one, with lean protein, cobweb and whole grains. Fill it to bursting with greens and so you optimize your lunch.

Only forgo any sprouts as they can harbor leaner, and skip traditional luncheon meats, which comprise nitrates and nitrites, for more creative solutions.

Go along things moving

Viii to 10 total glasses of fluids — water, vegetable or fruit juice, goop — each day will help keep solids moving through your digestive tract at an impressive rate and continue your stool soft and easier to pass.

Prune juice is tops in the category since it's a mild laxative. Try to beverage some when you're really clogged, and if y'all accept trouble taking it straight, blend it with other fruits and juices into a smoothie.

Another time-honored style to become things moving: Turn to warm liquids including that health-spa staple, hot water and lemon. They'll help stimulate peristalsis, those intestinal contractions that assistance yous go.

From the What to Expect editorial team and Heidi Murkoff, author ofWhat to Expect When You're Expecting. What to Expect follows strict reporting guidelines and uses only credible sources, such every bit peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions and highly respected health organizations. Learn how we keep our content authentic and upward-to-engagement by reading our medical review and editorial policy.

  • What to Expect When You're Expecting, 5th edition, Heidi Murkoff.
  • WhatToExpect.com, 3D and 4D Ultrasound During Pregnancy: Babe's First Photos, April 2019.
  • WhatToExpect.com, What Sunscreen Is Safe During Pregnancy?, May 2020.
  • WhatToExpect.com, Edema (Swelling of the Ankles and Feet) During Pregnancy, October 2020.
  • WhatToExpect.com, Yeast Infections During Pregnancy, June 2021.
  • WhatToExpect.com, Pregnancy Nutrition Chart: 33 Essential Nutrients for Pregnant Women, June 2020.
  • WhatToExpect.com, Snoring During Pregnancy, March 2021.
  • WhatToExpect.com, Ultrasound During Pregnancy, April 2021.
  • WhatToExpect.com, How Much Water Should You Drink During Pregnancy?, December 2020.
  • WhatToExpect.com, What to Eat for Lunch During Pregnancy, March 2021.
  • American Higher of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Ultrasound Exams, June 2020.
  • American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Guidelines for Diagnostic Imaging During Pregnancy and Lactation, October 2017.
  • Food and Drug Assistants, Ultrasound Imaging, August 2020.
  • Mayo Clinic, Childbirth Classes: Get Fix for Labor and Delivery, September 2020.
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  • National Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine, Journal of Cutaneous and Aesthetic Surgery,  Evaluation of Diverse Therapeutic Measures in Striae Rubra, April-June 2016
  • KidsHealth From Nemours, How Can I Relieve My Pregnancy Leg Cramps?, April 2015.
  • Mayo Clinic, What Causes Leg Cramps During Pregnancy and Can They Exist Prevented?, April 2021.
  • Science Directly, Vernix Caseosa: Formation and Functions, December 2014.
  • National Institutes of Wellness, National Centre, Lung, and Blood Constitute, How the Lungs Work, October 2020.
  • National Institutes of Health, National Library of Medicine, Journal of Cutaneous and Aesthetic Surgery,  Evaluation of Various Therapeutic Measures in Striae Rubra, April-June 2016
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