Week 24 of Pregnancy: What's Going On Inside

Overview

By week 24, you may have noticed some jerking movements inside your belly—or even seen them on the outside! Repetitive, jerky movements usually mean your baby has the hiccups. Hiccups are perfectly normal and can last anywhere from a minute to an hour.

Inside the uterus, your baby is enjoying some regular activities: thumb-sucking and opening and closing his or her eyes.

Wondering what your baby looks like at 24 weeks? Your baby is now about the size of an acorn squash. Average baby length is 8.3 in. (210 mm). And average baby weight is 1.4 lb (630 g).

How your baby is changing

Here are some of the important facts and developments around 24 weeks.

• This month, your baby is still building up body fat and starting to put on a lot of weight.
• Your baby is still small enough to change position a lot—from head-down to feet-down, or even sideways. You will feel more movement or less movement at certain times of the day and night.
• At 23 weeks of pregnancy, your baby's eyes show rapid eye movement.
• In rare cases, babies survive birth at 22 weeks, but generally, the lungs cannot yet breathe air.