Traditional symptoms of pregnancy such as missing a period or morning sickness, are recognized easily. However, there are other symptoms that also point to pregnancy—even though they are less common.

When you find out you're expecting, everything changes. You are charged with the tremendous responsibility of ensuring that you and your child grow together in good health. There will be vitamins to take, doctor's appointments to make, and of course, you'll have to watch what you eat.

A pregnant woman must carefully choose the fish in her diet to avoid dangerous contamination with mercury, a neurotoxin. According to the Food and Drug Administration, pregnant women should avoid undercooked or raw shellfish entirely.

Most moms will agree that swelling during pregnancy is a very common, very unpleasant effect of a joyous occasion. According to Parenttime.com, about 25 percent of the weight you gain during pregnancy is due to excess fluids. These fluids are necessary to nurture and protect your baby in the womb.

A pregnant woman often feels strong cravings for specific types of foods. Most commonly, these cravings will be for salty, sweet, sour and/or spicy items. Many expectant mothers have concerns about eating black and white pepper, and whether it affects the unborn baby.

The first trimester of pregnancy encompasses roughly the first 12 weeks. Gaining weight is a normal part of pregnancy, but not every woman gains weight in the first trimester. Typically, it is safe to lose weight during your first trimester, but you should not be actively dieting or trying to shed pounds.

Almost every woman with a visible baby bump has been asked whether she is having a girl or a boy. The gender of the baby is determined at conception, although differentiation of the sexual organs does not begin until the middle of the sixth week of gestation, according to the NOVA article, “How Is Sex Determined?

Once you know you're pregnant, your next concern will likely be, "Is my baby developing normally?" Measuring your blood level of the pregnancy hormone human chorionic gonadotropin, or HCG, produced by the growing placenta, every few days can help determine whether your pregnancy is progressing well.

Many people, including pregnant women, wonder when exactly a fetus becomes a baby. By "baby," they frequently mean a full-fledged, if very young and small, human being or human person.

Whether a woman wants to be pregnant or would prefer not to be, if she's getting unusual around the time she expects her menstrual period, she's likely to want to know whether they might indicate pregnancy. Headaches can be one of the earliest signs of pregnancy, and many women experience them.

It's possible to have what appears to be a period, even if you're pregnant. It's also possible to have a negative home pregnancy test and still be pregnant. If you think you might be pregnant, even though you're having vaginal bleeding and you have a negative pregnancy test, talk to your medical provider.

As a woman becomes older and her supply of eggs diminishes, she eventually enters menopause, when her body undergoes a number of changes. Most women enter menopause between the ages of 45 and 55, although this varies. Some of the changes that menopause causes are obvious, while others can be more subtle.