Does baby’s heart rate decrease as pregnancy progresses?

[dreamerkr]

Hey guys! I’m currently 18 weeks pregnant and my baby’s heart rate is anywhere between 140-160, averaging 150. A few weeks ago, around 14-15 weeks the heart rate was 155-170 bpm. Is this normal for the heart rate to decrease as the baby gets bigger? You can probably tell I’m a first timer haha!

I’m not so worried as I think I’ve started feeling movements.. not sure but it feels like bubbling in my stomach, and happens 10-15 times a day? And my tummy is a bit bigger than it was a few weeks back too, even with an anterior placenta.

Oh and that old wives’ tale of girls having a higher heart rate is so not true. 😂 I’m having a boy and around 12 weeks his heart rate was over 170 bpm! ❤️

Bump?

If you are having a home Doppler, the heart rate is notoriously inaccurate, sadly.

I have been told it does decrease as the pregnancy progresses too, so sounds normal to me.

Using, not having*

Yes it peaks around 10 weeks and then starts to decrease - my twins were 153 at 7 weeks, 180 at 10 weeks then settled into an average of 140-170 with girl twin always higher than her brother

Stop using a home doppler for reassurance when you haven't had formal training to use one. Especially so with an anterior placenta. Even trained doctors and midwives wouldn't use one for reassurance of fetal wellbeing.

Now you're feeling movements focus on those. Don't count the movements, just be aware of your baby's usual pattern.

Yeah it does. My daughters peaked at about 10 weeks at 170, slowly decreasing until it reached 130 ish until delivery x

Thanks for your replies guys! I don’t use a doppler regularly at all, probably once a week if that. Now that I’m starting to feel movements I won’t be using it even this much. 😊

Yes absolutely as the heart grows the rate slows. A heart starts off beating at around 190 then decreases to around 130 when baby is born. By the time baby is an adult heart rate will be around 60.

Home dopplers are rubbish, and unless you're very good at it you may well be listening to your own heart rate. It's not an old wives tale either btw! Congrats on your baby, it's really reassuring when you start feeling them move

Yep. Just in general, bigger animals have slower heartbeats (at least for mammals. Not sure about cold blooded animals). A mouse’s heartbeat is much faster than ours and ours is faster than an elephant.