Louise Broadbridge
Louise Broadbridge
Pregnancy Week 8

Will your baby have blue eyes?

Blue eyes, brown eyes, green eyes, hazel eyes?  This is the week that eye colour starts to develop and your baby is no longer classed as an embryo. Instead, they have been promoted to foetus!  Clever baby!

They may not be blowing raspberries just yet but they are growing a staggering 1mm per day and are now the size of a raspberry!

There is lots and lots going on and along with eye colour, the retinas are forming and the spinal cord is well underway (quick reminder; have you taken your folic acid today?) Your baby will also start to develop more recognisable facial features.

Arms and legs continue to form and take shape ready for crawling around under your feet! Ridges will start to appear where their fingers will eventually develop and their tail has almost disappeared. All of this growing and forming takes lots of energy and your baby’s heart is beating twice as fast as yours at between 140-170 beats per minute. There’s an old wives’ tale that a faster heartbeat is an indication of a girl and a slower heart rate means it is a boy.  I have watched many a baby’s heartbeat and can’t say that I agree or disagree – sometimes the theory works, sometimes it doesn’t! We all love an old wives’ tale though, don’t we?

The foetus is still relying on the yolk sac for nourishment but the placenta is busy developing and will soon be attached to the wall of the womb ready to take over and give your baby what they need.

What is happening to me at 8 weeks pregnant?

For you, things are pretty much the same as last week.  Your blood volume is continuing to increase in order to service your growing uterus and you may feel that your clothes are starting to get a little tight but you won’t need to switch to maternity wear just yet.

Don’t worry if you notice a milky discharge as this is quite common during pregnancy and is a bi-product of the hormone oestrogen and serves to maintain healthy bacteria where you need it most.

You are likely to still be feeling very tired and your breasts may feel larger and more tender than usual. Your nipples may also start to look darker in colour as your body produces more melanin during pregnancy. This may be a good time to ditch your normal underwire bra and start looking at buying some new supportive maternity bras to see you through your pregnancy.

At around eight weeks, you will attend your first appointment with your midwife, known as the booking appointment. Lasting around an hour, your midwife will ask you some questions to find out more about you and your pregnancy and give you lots of useful information. 

This is an ideal time to ask any questions you may have. Your midwife will also carry out some tests, including taking your blood pressure, testing your urine and collecting some samples of blood.

For many women, the first antenatal appointment is when their pregnancy really starts to feel real. Your midwife will also book you in for your first scan, known as the dating scan, which usually takes place around 12 weeks.

Sign up for a free online antenatal class