Quitting, even just during pregnancy, will reduce the risk. Women who smoke have nearly double the risk of low birth weight and premature babies. If you think you might be at risk of premature birth, talk to your doctor or other health professional. But if you look after yourself, you’ll have done the very best you can for your baby. managing stress, depression and anxiety.Įven if you follow all the pregnancy advice, you might still have a premature baby.doing the right amount of physical activity.not smoking, not drinking alcohol and not taking other drugs.The best way to make sure your pregnancy goes well is to go to your regular antenatal appointments and follow your doctor’s or midwife’s advice about: Being under 17 years or over 35 years can also be a factor in premature birth. These include poor or not enough nutrition, too much physical activity, smoking, alcohol and other drug use, too much stress, anxiety, depression, obesity, underweight and lack of prenatal care. There are also some other factors that are associated with a premature birth. conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure.a maternal infection or maternal condition that means the birth needs to be brought on quickly for the safety of mother and baby – for example, pre-eclampsia.some conditions of the uterus or cervix, like fibroids or a weakened cervix.The following factors increase the likelihood of a premature birth: In about half of all premature births, it isn’t known why the premature birth happens. Their eyes might still be fused shut.Īs these tiny babies grow, parents can watch the developmental changes in their baby’s appearance, movement and ability to interact with their world. They might look exhausted and have fragile, translucent skin. When a baby is born at 34-37 weeks of gestation (late preterm), they’ll probably look like a small full-term baby.Īs a baby’s gestational age at birth decreases, their weight and size generally decrease too.Įxtremely premature babies – for example, those born at 24 weeks of gestation – will be quite small and might fit snugly into your hand. Your premature baby’s appearance depends quite a lot on how premature your baby is. These babies have low birth weight, but their development is appropriate for their gestational age. Low birth weight can happen because premature babies are born before they get the chance to put on weight in the last weeks or months of pregnancy. Low birth weight is when babies weigh less than 2.5 kg or their weight is lower than what’s expected for their gestational age. If they’re more developed, they might be cared for in a special care nursery.īabies can be both premature and low birth weight. This means they’ll be cared for in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). And this means that they’ll probably need more medical support for their lungs, hearts, tummy and bowels, temperature control and feeding.įor example, most babies who are born earlier than 32 weeks of pregnancy will need help with breathing. It’s calculated from the first day of your last period.Įxact gestational age is important because the more premature babies are, the less developed they’ll be. Gestational age is the length of time your baby has been developing in your uterus. The degree of prematurity is often described by gestational age as: So a baby born at 36 weeks and 6 days is officially premature. A premature birth is when a baby is born before 37 weeks. Pregnancy lasts an average of 40 weeks (usually between 38 and 42 weeks).
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