How Big is a 5 Month Old Fetus

 

By this time, the size of the fetus is more or less half of the baby’s expected size at birth. The baby will also now be more active inside the womb, where you will experience more “quickening” symptoms as you feel your baby’s movements.

 

 

In the beginning of the fifth month, the average size of fetuses is approximately 7 to 8 inches long and will weigh about 226 grams or roughly 7.97 ounces. By the second week of the fifth month, the fetus will now be about 9.5 inches long and will weigh 270 grams or approximately 9.5 ounces.

 

As the baby moves into the third week of the fifth month, the length will have increased to 10 inches and the weight will now be about 370 grams or 13 ounces. By the end of the fifth month, the fetus’ full size will be between 11 and 12.5inches long and the weight will be about 500 grams or approximately 17.63 ounces.

 

 

At the start of the fifth month, the fetus will have a cream-like substance covering his body to protect the epidermis. This protective coating is what is medically called vernix caseosa. 

 

The baby will now have developed a sleep pattern by this time, usually sleeping twelve up to fourteen hours per day. Mothers can actually tell when the baby is sleeping as there will hardly be any movements inside the womb.

 

Once the baby wakes up, mothers may feel the baby “stretching” his arms or legs which in turn show as protrusions on the belly. The baby’s physical appearance will likewise have improved significantly, where the arms and legs have grown into sizes proportionate to the head and boy.

Mothers may feel occasional pains in the pelvic area and constipation may be experienced at this time. Other than the hard-to-miss baby bump, stretch marks on the belly may also now start to appear.

 

As the thyroid gland becomes more active at the start of the fifth month, mothers will start to notice that they have a low tolerance for heat and may perspire more as a consequence.