Welcome to Week 10

Welcome to Week 10

10 Week Old Embryo

Your Baby: Measuring Up

It's getting harder to measure the embryo's full length, legs included, because it's curled up in your uterus. An easier way to measure the distance from the top of the head to the buttocks. This is about 1.57 inches (4 cm). The embryo's weight is about 1/5 ounce (5.67 gm). All the major body organs have begun to form, as have the bones of the skeleton. Its eyelids are growing and the outer ears are forming. Usually, after 10 weeks, the baby's heartbeats can be detected, and ultrasound can show the baby moving and wiggling.

Your Body: Safe Sex

Many expectant mothers wonder if it's safe to have sex during pregnancy. The answer is yes, unless you are at risk for premature labor. If you have a normal pregnancy, you can continue to make love and have orgasms up until the time you go into labor. Women who have placenta previa (when the placenta is covering the cervical opening or canal) cannot place anything in the vagina and must not have sexual intercourse.

It's normal to wonder if it's safe to have intercourse. Some worry that lovemaking could cause a miscarriage in the first trimester. Rest assured that sexual activity can't cause a miscarriage. Miscarriages at this early date usually happen because of genetic defects. They are not related to anything that you do after conception.

In the last weeks of pregnancy, some health care providers may recommend not having sex. This is because orgasms can cause uterine contractions. Some studies show, however, that orgasms don't lead to premature labor, premature rupture of your membranes, or premature birth. In fact, some studies suggest that women who have regular intercourse are less likely to deliver preterm.

Many couples enjoy the ability to have sex without using birth control. So look at it this way: Enjoy it while it lasts.

Weekly Tip

Have fun taking weekly or monthly photos of your beautifully blossoming body. By the end of your pregnancy, you'll be able to see just how far you've come.

Schedule An Appointment

Review Date: 8/20/2019

Reviewed By: LaQuita Martinez, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Emory Johns Creek Hospital, Alpharetta, GA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.


View References

The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. No warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, is made as to the accuracy, reliability, timeliness, or correctness of any translations made by a third-party service of the information provided herein into any other language. © 1997- A.D.A.M., a business unit of Ebix, Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.