In all actuality, my friend Michelle just had a baby boy 2 months ago. We are both very young and uneducated about the details of having a baby. However, since she has had her baby, I have learned a lot about them and the stages they go through. If she were still pregnant I"d now be able to answer all of her questions and offer her additional, helpful and interesting information. I could tell her what to expect during her pregnancy, and the development of her child. And it's still not too late to enlighten her about the stages her baby will go through in the coming years, and present to her different parenting strategies. .
To form a new life, a new person, the sperm must meet and fertilized the egg. If the sperm is successful enough to break through, and fertilize the egg, a series of cells are created and multiplied. At this stage the cells are called a zygote. After approximately 10 days the zygote attaches itself to the inside of the uterine wall, and forms the placenta, where the soon to be developing baby will gain it's food, oxygen and nourishment. The inner cells from the zygote continue to grow and become classified as an embryo. "Over the next 6 weeks, organs begin to form and function. The heart begins to beat and the liver begins to make red blood cells" (Myers 119). At 9 weeks the embryo begins to look human and is then classified as a fetus. Over the next 6 months the fetus will form its stomach and other organs. Also, at this time, the fetus can respond to noise and different sounds and gain familiarity with its mother's voice. Sadly, these different stages can be negatively affected and altered by teratogens. Teratogens are "harmful agents such as particular viruses and drugs" (Myers 119) that are able to pass through the.
placenta without being destroyed. Smoke, alcohol and drugs are teratogens and can affect the growing embryo and the fetus. It is highly recommended that pregnant women avoid the consumption of these for both their health and their baby's.
