5 Interesting Facts About Baby’s Kicks During Pregnancy

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Those kicks remind you of the life inside. They tell you that your happiness is growing in your womb and will soon come out and join your lives. The baby’s kicks make you feel special and enable your partner to connect with the baby. Not just that. They indicate that the fetus is having a healthy growth.

Interested to know more about the amazing baby kicks? Read here as Momjunction shares some unbelievable facts and answers tricky questions. We also share a kicks counting chart that will help you track the movements.

1. Kicks signify normal development and health of a baby

The baby kicks indicate that your baby is developing well inside the womb. You can understand that the baby is active when they turn, tumble, roll, and kick inside the womb. Moreover, a swishing feeling or flutter can be experienced in the abdomen when the baby stretches out its limbs. These movements become more distinct towards the later stages of pregnancy.

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2. The baby is likely to respond to external stimuli

Babies kick in response to some changes in the surrounding environment. Any external stimuli such as the food you eat or different noises can make the baby move or kick.

  • Response to sounds: During the 20th week, the fetus begins to hear low-pitch sounds and gradually begin to high-pitched sounds as the pregnancy proceeds. These movements indicate the normal growth of the baby.
  • Response to foods: The food that the mother eats during pregnancy introduces the baby to various flavors through the amniotic fluid that surrounds the baby inside the womb. These flavors can make the baby move if they like or dislike them.

3. The baby’s kicks increase when lying on the side

You can feel more kicks if you sleep on your side. This is because the supply of blood to the baby increases while lying on the left or right side, thereby improving their movements.

Professor Peter Stone of the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, who led a study published in The Journal of Physiology, says. “When the mother slept on her back, the baby became less active, which conserves oxygen. We found that the babies were only in an active state when the mother was on her left or right side. When the mother changed position during sleep, for example from left to back sleeping, the baby quickly changed activity state.”

4. Kicks are felt after nine weeks

5. Reduced kicks might indicate the baby’s distress

Once you complete 28 weeks, your doctor advises you to keep a count of the baby’s kicks. A baby, usually, kicks ten times in two hours. A reduced fetal activity can indicate fetal distress such as:

  • Maternal stress or nutritional problems. Your emotional and physical state impacts the baby’s movements. Similarly, inadequate nutritional supply can lead to improper development of the brain and nervous systems that can reduce the fetal activity. Drink a lot of water or keep walking around if you do not feel the movement of the baby.
  • Placental abruption. It can restrict the flow of blood and oxygen to the fetus, impacting its development.
  • Premature rupture of the amniotic sac. It can lead to decreased amniotic fluid and slow down the fetal movements due to stress or insufficient supply of oxygen.
  • Fetal hypoxia: This condition arises when the umbilical cord gets twisted, kinked or deformed. This cuts the supply of oxygen to the baby.

An ultrasound scan or a non-stress test can help determine the baby’s heartbeat and the reason for reduced fetal movements.

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