Pregnancy calendar - Week 27

Your baby’s development

At 27 weeks pregnant your baby is now 37cm long and weighs around 2lb. As you enter your third (and final!) trimester, your baby will start to receive immunity to infection from the antibodies that cross through the placenta. This immunity will be boosted by breastfeeding and lasts until your baby is a few months old.

You & your body

If you’re experiencing the pain of heartburn during pregnancy, you’re not alone. It’s more than just indigestion – it’s a powerful burning sensation that seems to be in the middle of the chest. Caused by the release of stomach acid, it’s often brought on by lying flat – not altogether helpful when you’re trying to get some rest!

There are many tried and tested methods of relieving heartburn during pregnancy, so you could try a few of these:

Eat your evening meal early, and don’t eat anything in the couple of hours before you go to bed
Take a glass of milk to bed with you
Sleep upright or propped-up – use a couple of pillows to support your back and neck
Get plenty of medical advice – and don’t take any indigestion remedies before checking with your midwife first

Did you know?

If you’re thinking of jetting off anywhere before your baby arrives, you can travel by air, but depending on the airline, you usually have to return by the time you are 32 weeks pregnant – assuming you’re having a normal pregnancy. Now that your bump is getting bigger, you’ll probably need a doctor’s note to reassure the airline when your due date is, that you’re fit to travel and you’re not going to have the baby on board! If you’re worried, find out more about travel during pregnancy.