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Weight gain in pregnancy

, medical expert
Last reviewed: 20.10.2021
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To be happy, a woman should like herself. Therefore, a constant struggle with excess kilograms or with their shortage is being conducted with varying success constantly. But as soon as a woman enters the period when she expects a child, physicians start to control her weight. This is not an idle curiosity. After weight gain during pregnancy is one of the indicators of the state of health of a pregnant woman, and, consequently, of her future baby.

Weight gain for weeks of pregnancy

Over the years, a definite schedule of the optimal body mass gain of the future mother has been worked out. This does not mean that having gained 50 grams more, the pregnant woman falls into the risk zone. Calculation of weekly supplementation is individual and should be based on the characteristics of the constitution, the state of health of the pregnant woman. But some averaged figures still exist. But before turning to the figures that reflect the weight gain for weeks of pregnancy, it is necessary to evaluate the body mass index (BMI) of a woman. The formula is simple and should not cause difficulties.

BMI = body weight of the pregnant woman / (height of the woman in meters) 2. That is, the weight in kilograms is divided by the square of the height taken in meters.

For example: Height = 1.6 m, weight = 64 kg. BMI = 64 / 1.62 = 64 / 2.56 = 25

We analyze the result obtained. If the calculated number falls into the area <19,8, then the woman has a lack of mass, from 19.8 to 26.0 - the norm,> 26.0 - excess body weight.

In most cases, in the first trimester, the expectant mother begins to recover, starting from the third month. It affects early toxicosis, and the addiction of the body to a new status. On average, this is one to two kilograms (the exception is the fair sex, previously adhered to a strict diet).

The intensity of recruitment in the second trimester starts to increase and is recommended in the range of 250-300 g per week. For example, 23 weeks of pregnancy can bring a woman up to 8 kg (from the beginning of pregnancy), with the fruit weighing about 480 grams.

The normal allowable increase in body weight from the initial value for the 29th week is eight to ten kilograms.

It is necessary to start weight control from the moment when the woman learned about her "interesting position" - this will be the starting point in the measurements. Observing pregnancy obstetrician-gynecologist recommends its "wards" to start a notebook or a notebook, where the pregnant woman will write down her indices.

During the entire period of bearing of the baby, the future mother should collect no more than 10 - 12 kilograms.

Weight gain at 20 weeks gestation

For nine months of bearing a baby, the body weight of a woman, under normal flow, should grow by 8 - 12 kg. But this does not mean that in the first months a woman can eat for two, and before the birth to go on a diet and in the end at the time of obstetrics get the 12 kg needed. It is necessary to adhere to the recommended schedule of the mass gain schedule for weeks.

During pregnancy, the weight of the future mother is:

  • From the weight of the baby: the mass of the fetus itself, the amniotic fluid and the placenta.
  • From the mass of the woman herself, it must be remembered that the uterus and the mammary glands grow in size. Increase the volume of circulating blood, fatty layer, the body delays water.

During the entire period of pregnancy, the growth of body weight occurs unevenly. With the increase in the gestational age, the growth rate increases. In the first half of the term (up to 20 weeks), the fetus grows slightly, and the second half is indicated by an increase in the rate of growth - the baby is gaining weight.

Week 20 is the middle of pregnancy and the peak moment in the growth of the body weight of the child and mother. Over time, the weight of the fetus increases, and the placenta falls. By the middle of the period, the volume of amniotic fluid is about 300 ml (by the 30th week this figure increases to 600 ml, and by 35 - to a liter, then the growth rate somewhat decreases). The future man himself weighs about 300 grams and has a length of 25 cm.

Weight gain at 20 weeks of pregnancy accounts for the increase in the weight of the uterus in the first half of pregnancy, then it will collect volumes only by stretching the fibers of muscle tissue, the weight remains unchanged.

The volume of blood circulation continues to increase during the entire duration of gestation. Preparing for feeding, the mammary glands begin to gain volume due to the reproductive properties of glandular tissue and the growth of fatty deposits.

The increase in weight, at its normal course, should be from 3 to 6 kg (depending on the woman's BMI).

Weight gain at 23 week of pregnancy

More than 5 months have passed since conception. Tummy markedly rounded. The fruit for this time added and in growth (up to 30 cm) and in mass - about 0.5 kg. The brain has increased tenfold (its mass is 20-25 g), so it is important to constantly supply the necessary amount of oxygen to the placenta of the fetus. By the 23rd week the fetus is fully formed and practically developed.

During this period, the expectant mother begins to feel her weight, which entails some physical and emotional discomfort:

  • There are headaches.
  • Puffiness.
  • There is insomnia.
  • Increased stress on the spine and joints, which leads to the appearance of pain.
  • Dyspnea.

Weight gain at 23 weeks of pregnancy is normal if the woman has gained from the moment of conception 4 - 7 kg. A greater deviation in this or that direction should alert both the future woman in childbirth and her physician. It is urgent to find and eliminate the cause of such a deviation.

Weight gain at 26 weeks gestation

With normal prenatal gestation, the daily weight gain at 26 weeks gestation is 150 grams. Accordingly, by this time, a woman can become heavier by 5 - 9 kg. To such figures results, basically, the fetoplacental system. It is thanks to this that the woman calmly sheds the gained weight right after delivery.

The mass of the fetoplacental system is:

  • The weight of the future child is from 2.5 kg to 4 kg.
  • A children's place - 0,5 - 0,6 kg.
  • The amniotic fluid is 1 - 1.5 liters.
  • The proliferation of the muscular tissue of the uterus and wide vascularization are added up to a kilogram to the total weight.
  • The growth of the mammary glands of the maternity breast is up to half a kilogram.
  • There is an increase in the volume of pumped blood (with obstetrics, the pregnant woman loses from 0.3 to 0.5 liters).

These kilograms constitute the physiological standard of weight gain, which is necessary for the full development and bearing of the fetus, it also goes away right after birth.

In the case of a pathological case (if the weight is typed too quickly or on the contrary, there is a shortage), the mother's body is not able to create harmonious conditions for the normal course of pregnancy. From this, first of all, the child suffers, then the woman herself.

Mass recruiting at week 26 can speak of a large fetus (the newborn weighs 4 kg or more), and the accumulation of excess fluid (edema) in the tissue layers.

A big kid, a hero. With a fetus weight of more than 4 kg, the risk of injury when passing through the birth canal for the newborn increases, and the mother in childbirth suffers. In this case, the probability of cesarean section is high. Therefore, the figure shown by the scales of the 26th week should be specially controlled. It depends on her: whether the pregnant woman will give birth or will resort to the help of surgeons.

But often puffiness and massive surpluses indicate a pathological complication of pregnancy, which only a specialist can determine. One of the complications:

  • Gestosis (late toxicosis). A dangerous pathology, the worst consequences of which can be the loss of a baby, and even the death of a woman in childbirth.
  • The raised level of arterial pressure which is capable to provoke a stroke.
  • And others.

With a significant increase in volume, pregnant women should observe unloading days (daily volume of liquid - up to 2 liters, reduce salt intake), but they must be taken under the doctor's order and under his constant supervision. With this symptomatology, it is mandatory to monitor blood pressure several times a day. Women of such a risk group are more likely to take urine tests than other pregnant women.

With a shortage of weight, there may be a delay or complete stopping of fetal formation. The cause of low weight is and low water (reduced amount of amniotic fluid), as well as chronic diseases of the internal organs of the woman. Determine the cause of the failure is necessary to, if possible, take adequate measures.

Drawing conclusions from the above, it is necessary to understand that the weight should be measured continuously, from the first to the last day of pregnancy.

Weight gain at the 29th week of pregnancy

At the time of 29 weeks, the weight of the baby is already about one and a quarter of a kilogram. The length of the child is approximately 37 cm. The proportions of the body vary. The skeletal part is strengthened, a subcutaneous fat layer appears. Weight gain at the 29th week of pregnancy is already significant and ranges from 6 to 10 kg (with a normal course of pregnancy). At the same time, my mother already feels this weight on herself.

  • Appears shortness of breath.
  • Pregnant even with a slight load quickly gets tired.
  • The load on joints, connective tissues and spine increases, pains appear in the lower back.
  • Problems with the "toilet": constipation and frequent urge to urinate.
  • Snoring occurs during sleep.

If the gain is excessive - the symptomatology is aggravated. To minimize these consequences, the pregnant woman must adjust her daily routine and nutrition. More rest, but do not lie on the couch, but to visit the outdoors, combining physical activity with fresh air.

To sleep the future mum on this term should only on a side. In this position, the internal organs of the pregnant woman undergo the least load.

From the diet should remove these products:

  • Beans.
  • Whole milk.
  • Fatty food.
  • Grapes.
  • Fresh cabbage.
  • Limit the sharp and salty dishes.
  • Sweets and pastries.

Remove everything that can cause constipation and heartburn.

Products number one for normal weight gain at the 29th week of pregnancy:

  • Grated raw carrot with apple.
  • Dairy products.
  • Dried fruits, especially prunes.
  • Olive, corn, flaxseed oil.
  • Sufficient volumes of clean water.

The rate of weight gain in pregnancy

In the initial ten weeks, usually, there is no increase in the future mom in the amounts. This is the period when the female body "assimilates" with a new status. Frequent cases of early toxicosis, which is more likely to work for a drop, rather than a set of kilograms. And only later the pregnant woman begins to grow stout. The approximate rate of weight gain during pregnancy during the first trimester is one to two kilograms. The maximum growth in the volumes of the future mother comes in the second and third trimester. On their length scales show each week a figure of 250-300 g greater than the previous seven days.

Especially watching the pregnancy obstetrician - gynecologist is interested in the last trimester. Prikidochno, the doctor determines the weekly rate of increase in the weight of the parturient woman at the rate: for every 10 cm of her height - 22 grams of supplementation. For example, the height of a woman is 160 cm. The rate of addition is no more than 352 grams, with a height of 185 cm - 400 grams, respectively.

Each woman is individual, therefore, in order to "keep a hand on the pulse," the weight of the pregnant woman is controlled at each visit of the doctor and entered on her exchange card. It will not be superfluous if its weight will be controlled and independently at home. For the purity of measurements, you should stand on the scales in the morning, on an empty stomach and in the same clothes.

Affects this parameter and the age of the woman in childbirth: the older she is, the higher the probability of gaining more. Important is the initial mass of the pregnant woman, her genetic constitution: a penchant for leanness or fatness. It is not paradoxical, the worse it was before conception, the more able to type for pregnancy, the body, as it were, replenishes the "deficiency" of kilograms. Affects the final figure and the number of fetuses that the pregnant one bears: twins, triplets, respectively, add their grams to the mother's kilograms.

Total weight gain in pregnancy

Changes in the numbers on the scales of each woman are strictly individual. But nevertheless the normative general increase in pregnancy falls within the limits of 7 to 16 kg. If a woman is constitutionally related to asthenics (thin), then she can easily add from 12 to 16 kg during the entire pregnancy, while she and her baby will feel great. In the case of a tendency to lush forms (hypersthenic), the rate of addition falls within the limits of 7 to 10 kg. If the pregnant woman is a normostenic, her weight can ideally be greater for the entire period of bearing the baby by 10-14 kg.

The kilograms are distributed approximately like this:

  • The baby itself is about 3 kg 500 gr.
  • The placenta is approximately 0.7 kg
  • The amniotic fluid is slightly less than a kilogram (≈0.9 kg).
  • Uterus ≈ 1 kg.
  • Increase in the volume of mammary glands - 400 - 500 gr.
  • The growth of blood plasma volumes is 1.2 - 1.5 liters.
  • Increase in the volume of cell fluid - 1,4 - 2,7 liters.
  • The growth of adipose tissue is 2.2 - 3 kg.

Naturally, these are average statistical values and they can vary in permissible limits. Ability to calculate the necessary value of growth is an excellent opportunity for a pregnant woman to monitor her weight independently and, if necessary, adjust it (nutrition, moderate physical activity, day regimen).

It is not superfluous to clarify that it is the weight voiced by the regulations that will most easily be reset after delivery. It is enough only proper nutrition and a complex of health-improving gymnastics.

Pathological weight gain in pregnancy

Why, observing pregnancy, obstetrician-gynecologist attaches such importance to the addition of body weight? Even now you can hear the advice of mothers, grandmothers and girlfriends, that if you are pregnant - then now you need to eat for two (or three - if twins). Doctors categorically disagree. It is these kilograms and the most difficult to lose a woman in childbirth after the baby's birth. But do not go to the other extreme, when, in order to save the figure, the woman simply is undernourished. The pathological increase in pregnancy in any of its manifestations is unacceptable.

If a pregnant woman controls maneuvering arrows of a scales, infringing herself in nutrition, then her baby also receives less vitamins, micronutrients. The general decline in the strength of the future mother provokes a lack of oxygen in the fetus, which can lead to hypoxia, placental peeling and miscarriage (premature birth). At best, the baby will be born weak, small.

In case of increased pathological weight gain during pregnancy, a woman risks to get diabetes, excessive loading of the spine and joints, frequent varicose veins, pain in the lower abdomen and the sacrum, which also does not add health. Excessive weight can talk about the unhealthy state of the future mother's organism and be an indicator of a possible late toxicosis.

Pregnant women who have recovered within reasonable limits are much easier to tolerate the period of gestation of the baby, and obstetric care also passes easier. The percentage of stillborn children and miscarriages in such mothers is significantly lower than in other categories.

Greater weight gain in pregnancy

The pathology of weight is in every situation a rather dangerous problem. In the case of the bearing of the baby, it extends not only to the mother, but also to the unborn child. A large increase in weight during pregnancy can be a signal of toxicosis, which is fraught with premature birth or miscarriage, the health and life of a woman is also endangered.

Some associate excess weight with the presence of fullness or puffiness, a large excess weight can serve as an impetus to the initial stage of diabetes, with problems with muscle activity, begins to puff shortness of breath, there is a shortage of air. Edema captures not only the lower limbs, but also the hands, the lower abdomen, the sacrum. There are other problems:

  • Increased fatigue.
  • Irritability.
  • High blood pressure.
  • Appear not only edema, but also pain in the calf muscles and back.
  • There are stagnant phenomena in the legs that exacerbate or provoke the development of varicose veins.

With a particularly complex pathology prematurely begins to exfoliate the placenta, which provokes the fading of the fetus or miscarriage.

The increased weight can be designated not only due to the growth of adipose tissue, but also due to the outflow of fluid from the bloodstream of the tissue layers, which is visualized as edema, which is not even noticeable initially.

Often puffiness appears closer to childbirth, which many mothers perceive as the norm, but this deviation can be determined by the 23rd week. The cause of the pathology is the physiological restructuring of the maternal organism and if a woman before pregnancy suffered for renal dysfunction and heart problems, edema is the response of these organs to a new load.

The combination of the characteristics described above can signal a more serious disease - gestosis (toxicosis of late pregnancy). This vascular disease is characterized by a malfunction in the work of the kidneys, cardiovascular system, cerebral vessels of the future mother. Therefore, even with the slightest suspicion of gestosis, the pregnant woman is subject to urgent hospitalization. For treatment and rehabilitation can take more than one week.

When ascertaining the large increase in pregnancy, the obstetrician-gynecologist, first of all, must exclude gestosis, and then already deal with other causes of weight gain. The body weight can increase and at the expense of a fatty fabric that as can complicate a bearing of the kid.

  • The spine and so is exposed to the raised loading, and the additional weight only aggravates such position. At the same time, the usual center of gravity shifts, bringing additional problems. There are pains in the back.
  • The osteochondrosis becomes aggravated.
  • There are headaches.
  • Protrusion of the intervertebral discs is observed.
  • Increased risk of thrombosis.

Therefore, if the respondent only plans to conceive a child and is a carrier of lush forms, it is worth considering about what has been read, and throwing off a couple - three kilograms. So the future mother will get rid of many problems during the bearing of the baby and in the process of giving birth.

If the problem of excess weight existed before pregnancy, do not think that you need to do everything to no longer gain pounds. After all, the composition and indices of the fat layer of the "acquired" during pregnancy is significantly different from the woman's savings not in position. In any case, pregnancy is not a time for experiments and this problem should be solved together with a nutritionist.

It is necessary to remove from your diet fatty foods, mayonnaise, fast food products. Food should be less caloric, but not inferior in nutrition and fullness of vitamins and minerals. It is necessary to revise and your daily routine: increase motor activity, make longer walks in nature.

That's why the obstetrician-gynecologist carefully controls the addition of his wards.

Little weight gain in pregnancy

Everywhere the "golden mean" is preferred. Not only big problems arise in women with signs of obesity, but a small increase in weight during pregnancy does not bode well.

A small increase is an indicator that the fetal organism does not receive enough nutrients for its development, which hampers all processes. Not finding the necessary amount of nutrients, the fetus will begin to pull them from the mother's body. Therefore, it is necessary to consult a specialist (obstetrician and nutritionist). Perhaps it will be enough just to adjust the food, introduce into it products of high calorie content, increase the consumption of fats - the source of energy. In the food it is necessary to introduce products stimulating the appetite (for example, sprouted wheat - a powerful deposit of vitamins, minerals and trace elements). Food should be divided and often (five to six meals a day).

For the entire period of pregnancy, such a woman should gain at least 11 kg, otherwise she risks giving birth to a premature baby weighing less than two kilograms. Therefore, everything must be done to increase the weight gain in the range from 11 to 16 kg.

It is very important to determine the reason why the weight of the pregnant woman grows slower than recommended by the norm. It can be not only malnutrition, but also hereditary predisposition, diseases of a physical and mental nature.

Calculation of weight gain in pregnancy

The increase in the body weight of a pregnant woman depends directly on its initial physical parameters. As it was written above, in order to calculate the weight gain during pregnancy and determine the recommended weight gain schedule depending on the period of gestation, it is first necessary to find an individual body mass index. The formula is simple enough: the initial mass of the body should be divided into a square of growth, taken in meters. Ideally, this figure should fall in the interval from 20 to 26.

  • If the BMI is below 18.5 - exhaustion - this indicates significant problems.
  • BMI in the calculation was between 18.5 - 19.8 mild degree of exhaustion.
  • ITM 19.8 - 26 is the norm.
  • BMI - 26 - 30 mild obesity.
  • Body mass index over 30 is obesity.

As an example, consider the parameters: weight = 79.6 kg, height = 1.82 m.

Hence BMI - 79.6 / 1.822 = 23.5 - the norm. Now it remains to turn to the table of recommendations. It can be seen that the lower the index of the body of a future mother, the more kilograms it can gain during all nine months.

trusted-source[1], [2], [3]

Table of weight gain in pregnancy

In a modern technological society, the question of overweight in general and the search for weight gain during pregnancy in particular is acute. In order not to harm the development and health of the future baby, as well as the most quickly recovering from childbirth, it is worth listening to the doctor's recommendations and carefully watching your body weight increase.

The table below of the weight gain during pregnancy will allow you to easily navigate in the normative indices and, if necessary, adjust your diet.

Pregnancy, weeks

Rate of increase, kg

BMI below 19.8
asthenics

BMI 19.8 - 26.0
normosthenic

BMI above 26.0, hypersthenic

2

0.5

0.5

0.5

4

0.9

0.7

0.5

6th

1.4

1.0

0.6

8

1.6

1.2

0.7

10

1.8

1.3

0.8

12

2.0

1.5

0.9

14

2.7

1.9

1.0

16

3.2

2.3

1.4

18

4,5

3.6

2.3

20

5.4

4.8

2.9

22

6.8

5.7

3.4

24

7.7

6.4

3.9

26th

8.6

7.7

5.0

28

9.8

8.2

5.4

Thirty

10.2

9.1

5.9

32

11.3

10.0

6.4

34

12.5

10.9

7.3

36

13.6

11.8

7.9

38

14.5

12.7

8.6

40

15.2

13.6

9.1

Schedule weight gain during pregnancy

Each pregnancy is similar to each other and just as individual. But over the years, the canons have been developed that allow one to orient herself pregnant and independently, determining how much her pregnancy is within the norm. This is not a whim, because any deviation is capable of causing irreparable harm to the fetus. Therefore, weekly monitoring of body weight - one of the serious indicators of health and mom, and the future baby.

Schedule weight gain during pregnancy of the fetus directly depends on how much his mom corrected. And the weight of a pregnant woman includes not only the burden of the unborn child, but also the placenta, amniotic fluid, the growth of the uterus and mammary glands.

From the aggregate of these parameters, we obtain the figures of the added kilograms:

  • In the first month, there may be an increase in body weight (if the pregnant woman does not have toxicosis) - 175 g per week.
  • In connection with the restructuring of the body, in the second month of pregnancy the woman's growth rate slightly decreases - 125g within a week.
  • The third month is marked by the lowest increase - only about 75 g / week.
  • The fourth month - there is a sharp increase in mass - 200 g / week.
  • The fifth month - the peak body weight of a pregnant woman - about 600g / week.
  • The sixth month - the growth rate is somewhat reduced to 400 g for the next weeks.
  • From the seventh to the ninth month (before delivery), weight gain stabilizes and is 450 grams for one week.

This average growth schedule for pregnancy and minor deviations from it are natural and are related to the individuality of each woman, her constitution and physiology.

Weight gain in pregnancy twins

One of the important criteria for the full development of the fetus is the normal addition of kilograms of his mother. To date, there is no problem to find graphics or tables that allow you to estimate the body weight of a pregnant woman, to calculate the deviation from the norm. But this is with a monotonous pregnancy. And what if the ultrasound showed twins? Here the opinions of the doctors vary somewhat.

Some believe that there is no difference in the case of one- or bipartite pregnancy, and the woman must adhere to the classic schedule of weight gain.

In the opinion of others, weight gain in pregnancy twins can and should be greater and be 15 to 20 kg. The future mother of asthenic type of constitution is desirable to recover by 20 kg, with hypersthenic type - 15 kg. The calculation is quite simple. The full weight of a newborn is about three kilograms. Hence the total added kilograms of a woman wearing two children, at least these 3 kg should be more from a single pregnancy (but one should not forget the mass of additional amniotic fluid and one more "baby seat").

You should not allow weight loss in the first trimester and keep an increase of 650 grams weekly during the second trimester of pregnancy. If the put growth is not observed - it can talk about malnutrition of the future woman in labor, or too high energy expenditure. At the same time it is worth reviewing your diet by introducing more caloric meals and increasing the time a woman will spend on rest. If the added kilos slightly exceed the norm, it is necessary, on the contrary, to reduce the calorie content of the food (without losing it in vitamins and trace elements) and activate the regime of the day.

Daily weight gain in pregnancy

No obstetrician-gynecologist will tell you what is the normal daily weight gain during pregnancy. After all, life can not be driven into a clear framework. And if a week pregnant within the norm can gain about 450 grams (an average of about 60 grams per day), it does not mean that every day you need to withstand these grams clearly. If a festive table is laid - why not please yourself with something delicious. The main thing afterwards is to (on the recommendation and under the supervision of the doctor) unloading days.

Unloading during pregnancy does not allow a strict diet. It includes a reduction in caloric content of dishes, without reducing their nutritional status, and abundant drinking. Therefore, do not hurt yourself by the daily gain of kilograms during pregnancy, it will be sufficient to weigh once a week. An exception can be made if the future mother "relaxed" and "allowed herself an extra".

A woman is getting ready to become a mother. Many believe that during this period, she needs to eat for two, so that both her and the baby will suffice. It is not right. Do not go to other extremes: strict diets are also not allowed in this period. But to revise your diet is not only possible, but also necessary. After all, weight gain during pregnancy is controlled more easily than stopping those complications that can provoke an "abnormal" weight. From the moment of conception, the future mother is responsible not only for herself, but also for the life and health of her unborn child.

trusted-source[4], [5], [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11]

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