PSYC1023 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Fetus, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, Umbilical Cord
Document Summary
Conception begins with a zygote the union of a sperm and an egg: the germinal stage (conception 2 weeks) The zygote may implant in the first week and the placenta, passage way from mother to infant, forms: the embryonic stage (2 weeks 2 months) Birth defects and miscarriages may occur in this vulnerable stage. Maternal malnutrition, illness and drug use may be dangerous. Fetal alcohol syndrome may be extra hazardous during this stage. Especially when the mother would not know she is pregnant due to the earliness of this stage. At four weeks, the head, brain, heart, arm bud and umbilical cord forms: fetal stage (2 months until birth) From 2-4 months muscles and bones develop, and the fetus starts moving. The fetus is a lot more recognisable. In the final 3 months (7,8,9), the brain cells rapidly multiply. 22-26 weeks (4-5 months) is the age of viability this is where a premature baby would survive.
