Life Before Birth -- First Trimester

Zoe Vidal <[email protected]>

ABOUT BABIES ANDABOUT BABIES ANDUNBORN CHILDRENUNBORN CHILDREN

LIFE BEFORE BIRTH:THE FIRST TRIMESTERLIFE BEFORE BIRTH:

THE FIRST TRIMESTER


CHROMOSOMES are tiny threadlike structures composed of nucleic acids and proteins (chromatin), found in all plant and animal cells.

The chromosome contains the nucleic acid DNA, which in turn is divided into smaller units of inheritance called “genes”.

The genes determine the hereditary characteristics, such as color and size, of the cell or organism.


DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) This molecule is the genetic blueprint for each cell and ultimately the blueprint that determines every biological characteristic of a living organism.

In most cellular organisms, DNA is organized in chromosomes located in the nucleus of the cell. The DNA set of every naturally born organism is unique, unless it is “cloned”.


THE OVUMThe ovum is the

female reproductive cell that is meant to unite with its male

counterpart, the sperm cell, in the

process of fertilization.

It is produced in a woman's ovaries.


THE SPERMis the male sexual reproductive cell that fuses with the ovum in the process of fertilization.

Each sperm contains the husband's genetic information to be contributed during fertilization. It also initiates the development of the ovum.

A sperm may be only 1/195,000 the size of an ovum but has a wide range of shapes and sizes.


... and let the marriage bed be kept undefiled; for God will judge fornicators and adulterers.

(Hebrews 13:4)

True love waits, so …SAVE SEX FOR MARRIAGE

… and never poison the bride!

Let marriage be held in honorby all …


An ovum surrounded by sperm.

Only the best 50 to 100 may be able to reach the ovum.

Of these, only one can penetrate the ovum to deliver the other half of the chromosomes need-ed to complete a human cell.

DAY 1

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations. (Jeremiah 1:5)


Fertilization begins when a sperm

successfully penetrates the

outer layer of the ovum.

Conception is that stage of the fertiliza-tion process wherein the 23 chromosomes of the sperm

pair off with the 23 chro-mosomes of the ovum.

At this crucial moment, it is certain that at least

one new human being has been created!

CONCEPTION

I also am mortal, like everyone else, a descendant of the first-formed child of earth; and in the womb of a mother I was molded into flesh, within the period of ten months, compacted with blood, from the seed of a man and the pleasure of marriage. (Wisdom 7:1-2)


What biologists call a human fertilized ovum is also in fact a human being with a single-celled body.

Thirty hours after conception, this basic human body quickly begins to divide into two and keeps on duplicating, growing at a very fast rate.

Cell Division

In the first two weeks of rapid cell division, biologists call this new human being a “zygote”. Imagine that! Once upon a time, you were a zygote!


When the first duplication or “mitosis” is complete, the

result is a human being with a two-celled body – a

body which will double rapidly to become 4, 8, 16,

32 cells and so on in the weeks that lay ahead.

Every resulting cell contains a complete set of the original

46 chromosomes from the sperm and ovum.

If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me, and the light around me become night,” even the darkness is not dark to you; the night is as bright as the day, for darkness is as light to you. (Psalm 139:11-12)

Cell Division


This human being is no longer just a fertilized ovum or zygote.

Biologists call the daughter cells of the zygote “blastomeres”.

While it keeps on duplicating, the fertilized egg is brushed by hairlike cilia and journeys down the fallopian tube into the uterus, where the soft lining has been prepared for its arrival and implantation.

Do not delay me, since the LORD has made my journey successful; let me go that I may go to my master. (Genesis 24:56)

DAY 3-4


DAYS 5-9: IMPLANTATION


During this second week, the placenta begins to form, nourishing a developing baby now composed of the three primary types of tissue:

endoderm, ectoderm, and mesoderm.

Up to now, the mother has no reason to suspect that she is pregnant. By the time she misses her period, the baby

would have been alive for at least two weeks (about four weeks after the first

day of her last normal period).

After the first two weeks, biologists call the new human being an

“embryo”.

Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.” (Luke 1:41-42)

DAY 10-14


The third week sees the formation of

the neural tube, precursor to the central nervous system;muscle tissue from which major organs and glands will arise;blood vessels;beginnings of the digestive cavity.

On the 21st day, another tube folds on itself and develops into a basic tubular heart which begins to undulate.

Although the embryo does not appear to be human, the humanity of this living organism was complete since Day 1.

DAY 21-23

This human embryo is now about 1/16 of an inch.


By the end of the first month, the human embryo has a head

and a trunk and all major organs have begun their

development.

Structures that will be-come arms and legs, called limb buds, begin to appear. The heart which had been beating since the 21st day

now has four chambers.

The backbone and muscles are forming. Eyes and ears

have begun to show. This human embryo is about

one-sixth (1/6) of an inch long.

DAY 28 WEEK 4


At one month old, the baby is 10,000 times larger than the original fertilized egg and is developing rapidly.

The heart is pumping increasing quantities of blood through the circulatory system.

The placenta forms a unique barrier that keeps the mother’s blood separate while allowing food and oxygen to pass through to her baby.

DAY 34-36 WEEK 5


At 1/2 inches long, electrical activity begins in the develop-ing brain and nervous system.

The fingers begin to develop and the human embryo has

nostrils. The eyes darken as pigment is produced. The liver is

now taking over the production of blood cells, and the brain

begins to control movement of muscles and organs. The heart

has four chambers and is beating rapidly.

The mother is about to miss her second period and has probably confirmed that she is pregnant.

DAY 40-42 WEEK 6


Soon the eyelids will seal to protect the baby during this light-sensitive month.

At this time, gonads begin the production of the sex hormones, testosterone and estrogen.

In the next weeks, the calibration of these hormones will cause the brain to be wired as masculine or feminine.

DAY 44-46 WEEK 7

The baby begins to move spon-taneously. The jaw forms, in-cluding teeth buds in the gums.


This baby already has ears, fingers, and toes. Everything

is now present that will be found in a developed adult.

The heart has been beating for more than a month, the

stomach produces digestive juices and the kidneys have

begun functioning. Forty muscle sets begin to operate

in conjunction with the nervous system. The baby’s

body responds to touch.

WEEK 8

The baby is about one and one-fifth (1 1/5) inches long. The head is about half that length. From the eighth week onward, doctors call the unborn baby a “fetus” – Latin for “young one” or “offspring”.


Fingerprints are already evident in the skin. The young one will curve its fingers around an object placed in the palm of its hand.

WEEK 9 2 MONTHS

For it was you who formed my inward parts; you knit

me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for

I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Wonderful are your works; that I know very well.

My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret,

intricately woven in the depths of the earth.

(Psalm 139:13-15)


The baby is about two and one-half (2½) inches from head to rump. It has doubled in size since Week 7. The fingernails are developing. Between 8 and 10 weeks, the baby begins small, random movements, though they are too slight to be felt yet. The baby’s heartbeat can be detected electronically. The mother’s womb has now doubled in size. The baby can squint, swallow and wrinkle its forehead.

WEEK 10

Thus says the LORD, your Redeem-er, who formed you in the womb: I am the LORD, who made all things, who alone stretched out the heav-ens, who by myself spread out the earth ... (Isaiah 44:24)


As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” (Rom 10:15)

WEEK 11At this time, the baby is

about 2¾ inches long.

The baby’s face has assumed a more humanlike profile, and

muscle movements are becoming more coordinated, and he

(or she) begins to pee.

The “little feet” are the symbol of the Pro-Life movement.


The baby is able to swallow, and the kidneys are able to make urine. In the 11th or 12th week the external genitals become evident. Blood begins to form in the bone marrow. The baby now sleeps, awakens and exercises its muscles – energetically turning its head, curling its toes, and opening and closing its mouth. The palm, when stroked, will make a tight fist. The baby breathes amniotic fluid to help develop its respiratory system.

WEEK 12

The baby is about three and one-half (3½) inches from head to rump.


Listen to me, O coastlands, pay attention, you peoples from far away! The LORD called me before I was born, while I was in my mother's womb he named me. (Is 49:1)

WEEK 14Fine hair has begun to grow on the head, and

sexual differentiation has become apparent. The

young one is about four and three-fourths (4¾)

inches from head to rump. The head is erect and the

legs are developed.


This is a child,This baby would not have been alive

had I not given it life.

Not a “choice”.It is my Father who plans families;

your choice is to obey the plan or not.

For this reason,bend your knees

before my Father,from whom every familyin heaven and on earth

is named.[ Ref: Ephesians 3:14-15 ]


Will youhelp me build a

CIVILIZATION OF LIFE?

I am counting on YOU.


NOTES ON THIS PRESENTATION

1. This visual aid is straightforward and fundamental in presenting the phenomenon of procreation from the perspectives of science and Faith.

2. The science is plainly clinical while the Faith reflections on the depicted fetological stages are Scriptural.

3. It will be appreciated better by seventh graders and older students who have had basic biological studies.

4. Those who profess to believe in the Bible should have no problems with the quotations embedded in the slides.

5. While the two perspectives may be treated separately, doing so will deprive viewers of an integral grasp of the truly remarkable events and the deeper meaning of the reproductive process.

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Life Before Birth -- First Trimester

Health & Medicine

Transcript of Life Before Birth -- First Trimester