Gestational age is counted from the first day of your last menstrual period (LMP) and is the number your doctor uses for every appointment, test, and due date. Fetal age (also called conception age, meaning the actual time elapsed since fertilization) is always approximately 2 weeks less than gestational age. A baby at 40 weeks … Read more
Most parents can find out their baby’s sex as early as week 10 through a clinical cell-free DNA (cfDNA) blood test, or at weeks 18 to 20 through a standard anatomy ultrasound. The method you choose determines how early you get an answer and how much it costs. The Earliest Clinical Option: NIPT at Week … Read more
Premature babies should be tracked against their adjusted age (also called corrected age, meaning the age calculated from the baby’s original due date rather than birth date) rather than their birth age. Most preemies born between 28 and 36 weeks catch up to their full-term peers by age 2, and those born closer to 24 … Read more
The average age of first-time mothers in the United States is 27.5 years, according to the CDC’s most recent final birth data from 2023. That figure has risen from 26.6 in 2016 and from just 21.4 in 1970, reflecting a steady generational shift driven by education, rising child-rearing costs, and changing social expectations. The 2023 … Read more
Due date calculations are only accurate within a window of about 2 weeks on either side of the predicted date. Only 4% to 5% of babies are born on their exact estimated due date (EDD). Most full-term births occur anywhere between 38 and 42 weeks of pregnancy, making the EDD a statistical midpoint rather than … Read more
IVF due dates are calculated from the embryo transfer date, not from your last menstrual period (LMP). For a Day 5 blastocyst transfer (the most common type in the U.S.), add 261 days to your transfer date. For a Day 3 transfer, add 263 days. Because the exact fertilization date is known in IVF, this … Read more
Doctors count pregnancy from the first day of your last menstrual period (LMP) because conception usually happens 10 to 16 days later and most women know their period date but not their exact ovulation date. This method adds roughly 2 weeks to the biological age of the embryo, making a full-term pregnancy 40 weeks by … Read more
Pregnancy lasts 40 weeks, divided into 3 trimesters. Your baby grows from a single fertilized cell to a full-term newborn averaging 7.5 pounds and 20 inches long. Every week brings measurable changes to both mother and baby. What to Expect Each Trimester at a Glance Pregnancy is divided into three trimesters spanning 40 weeks, each … Read more
The average age gap between siblings in the United States is 2 to 3 years, with 2 years (24 months) being the single most common spacing. CDC and National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) data shows roughly 30% of American sibling pairs are spaced 24 to 35 months apart. Most US parents have their second … Read more
Advanced maternal age (AMA) is the medical term for any pregnancy in a woman aged 35 or older at the time of delivery. The risk of chromosomal abnormalities, pregnancy complications, and cesarean delivery rises measurably at this threshold. With proper prenatal care, the majority of women over 35 in the United States deliver healthy babies. … Read more