Your baby

Your baby is growing and maturing fast. Their muscles have developed and their body is well proportioned, but they are still very thin. They will put on a lot of weight in the next month.

Their skin is no longer transparent. It’s red, very wrinkly and is covered in vernix, a waxy coating that provides a barrier over their skin to protect against infection and from the amniotic fluid they are surrounded by. It is very common for vernix to be covering your baby right up until birth, although if you go past your due date it's likely that it will be much less.

Your body

Women usually put on quite a lot of weight from now until 36 weeks, although this will be different for everyone. Remember, you don’t need to eat for two. Having a healthy diet with good nutrition for you and your baby is more important than the amount of food you eat.

As your bump grows, you might start to see stretch marks – pink or purple lines that develop on the surface of the skin. These might develop on your tummy, thighs or breasts. The skin can become sensitive and itchy, too.

Stretch marks aren’t harmful and they will fade and become less noticeable over time. Not every woman develops stretch marks. There’s no treatment that can totally get rid of stretch marks, but the earlier you start, the better the result should be. Stretch marks respond more to treatment when they’re new and red.

Things to remember

If you haven’t already had one, now is the time to have a whooping cough (pertussis) vaccination. Whooping cough can be a very serious illness for newborn babies. If you are vaccinated, antibodies will transfer from you to your baby, protecting them when they are too young to have a vaccination themselves.

This vaccination is offered free to all pregnant women in Australia through the National Immunisation Program.

You can read more about the whooping cough vaccination in the Department of Health’s brochure, Protect your baby from whooping cough.

Resources and support

Speak to your doctor, midwife or obstetrician if you have questions about your pregnancy.

Pregnancy, Birth and Baby also has more information on:

• maternity care in Australia
• having a healthy pregnancy
• exploring the anatomy of pregnancy and birth
• checkups, screenings, scans and tests you can have during your pregnancy
• common conditions you might experience during your pregnancy
• looking after your mental health and wellbeing

Speak to a maternal child health nurse

Call Pregnancy, Birth and Baby to speak to a maternal child health nurse on 1800 882 436 or video call. Available 7am to midnight (AET), 7 days a week.