You have been nurturing the precious living being inside of you and are waiting to meet your baby soon. You eat right, stay active, and avoid harmful things for you and your baby.

You are proactive in protecting the well being of your baby by going to regular prenatal care visits and doing routine tests to detect and prevent possible pregnancy complications. You can continue the commitment towards your baby's health by being vigilant of his or her movements.

Setting aside time once a day when your baby is most active to count kicks, turns, swishes, rolls, and jabs may help identify potential problems and could help prevent stillbirth. Though recommended for high risk pregnancies as early as 24 weeks, counting fetal movements daily starting at 28 weeks and onward can be beneficial for all pregnancies.

Research has shown that fetal movement is an excellent indicator of your baby's well-being. Significant changes in the fetal movement pattern may help identify problems with your pregnancy before the baby's heart rate is affected. Once the heart beat stops, it is too late.

Doing a daily Kick Count not only helps you feel confident about your baby's health, but also gives helpful information to your obstetrical provider. If the information suggests that there may be a problem, this does not necessarily mean that your baby is in trouble. It just means that you may need further care and more tests.

Discuss daily fetal Kick Count and other tests for monitoring your baby's well-being with your obstetrical provider during your prenatal care visits.

Join the BabyKick Alliance in the effort to decrease stillbirths in the U.S. and worldwide by educating other pregnant women about the importance of decreased fetal movement and stillbirth prevention.

Best regards for a healthy pregnancy,

Diep Nguyen, MD, FACOG
OB-GYN and founder, BabyKick Alliance