Determining Your Due date

DETERMINING YOUR DUE DATE

                When determining your due date, it is helpful if you have been keeping a record of the date your periods begin each month. Then, when you find you are PREGNANT, it will help eliminate some of the guesswork about your due date if you have this information handy on your calendar.

                The average time of gestation (from conception to full term) is 266 days, although it may be as short as 240 days or as long as 300 days. Officially, that’s 40 weeks, but nature rarely obeys official rules—in fact, less than five percent of all babies arrive promptly at 40 weeks.

                To figure out your due date, take the first day of your last period, count back three months and add seven days. This equals nine months and seven days, or 280 days. For example, if the starting date of your last period was June 25, your baby will probably arrive a little earlier than your official due date. If your periods are on a 28- day cycle, your baby may make its appearance a little later than expected.