Pregnancy week by week guide

Everything you need to know when you're expecting

Woman lying on a bed cradling her pregnant belly
(Image credit: Getty / Future)

Track your pregnancy week by week with our easy guide...

Pregnancy is an exciting time, but it can sometimes also be stressful. There's just so much to think about in order to keep you and your baby happy and healthy during their nine months of intensive growing.

Because we know how overwhelming this can seem at first, we've put together this handy pregnancy week by week guide. With you every step of the way, it details all the important bits – from fetal development to how your diet should be changing.

You'll be amazed at how quickly your baby grows, from the first few weeks when they're just a tiny cluster of cells, through to them developing their little arms and legs and learning how to kick and when at 12 weeks you can even guess their sex with the nub theory test.

While you're pregnant you'll probably want to make changes to your lifestyle, to give your little one the best start in life. This can include giving up things (like smoking!) and taking up other things (like regular doses of special vitamins and minerals).

We've laid out the things you can do each week in terms of your diet to make sure you're on track for a healthy pregnancy – like cutting out paté for instance, and eating plenty of folic acid-rich foods like spinach. Plus, you'll want to drink plenty of water to keep hydrated.

There are other things you need to know, too, like how to cure morning sickness. Click on however many weeks pregnant you are to see the most common symptoms, and the best cures we know of (in case you need to know, it's ginger for morning sickness).

Ready to learn more? Scroll down and select your week of pregnancy to read all about the symptoms, fetal development and things you should be doing for your stage of pregnancy…

Week by week pregnancy guide

Family Editor

Stephanie has been a journalist since 2008, she is a true dynamo in the world of women's lifestyle and family content. From child development and psychology to delicious recipes, interior inspiration, and fun-packed kids' activities, she covers it all with flair. Whether it's the emotional journey of matrescence, the mental juggling act of being the default parent, or breaking the cycle of parenting patterns, Stephanie knows it inside out backed by her studies in child psychology. Stephanie lives in Kent with her husband and son, Ted. Just keeping on top of school emails/fundraisers/non-uniform days/packed lunches is her second full-time job.