Home Fetal Monitor

No matter how far advanced you are intro your pregnancy there a few experiences that can compare to hearing your baby’s heartbeat for the first time.

Up until recently this was only available during a prenatal appointment and used to make sure that your pregnancy was progressing as it should.  The tool of the trade used to be a stethoscope, and will still used commonly today to listen to adults heartbeat is making way for a more accurate method thanks largely to the advancement in technology.

Many doctors and midwifes seem to have lost the art of using a stethoscope for hearing a baby’s heartbeat which is normally traceable anywhere between 15 – 18 weeks.  This depends largely on the shape and size of mom and the overall position of the baby.

So with the stethoscope seemingly becoming more and more redundant, a newer and more accurate approach to listening you your baby’s heartbeat has been developed.
The use of a home fetal monitor that utilizes ultrasound technology means you can now hear your baby’s heartbeat from as early as week twelve into your pregnancy.

Obviously you still need regular antenatal check-ups at the hospital, but for any mom- to-be the ability to hear the sound of her unborn baby over and over again from the comfort of her own home is a god send.

Many models are also backed by the FDA, so you can rest assured that a Doppler heart rate monitor is completely safe for you and your baby.

To hear the fetal heartbeat, simply place some gel on the end of the Doppler probe and some on your tummy.  Then move the probe around your abdomen area in small circular movements until you hear that unmistakable sound.

In case you’re not too sure what to listen for, your baby’s heartbeat will resemble a fast passed ‘swoosh-swoosh’ type of nose and as mentioned should be able to be heard by about week 12 of your pregnancy.

Some of the better baby heart rate monitors actually allow you to record your baby’s heartbeat and save it directly to a computer.  Giving you the option to email the sound to family or friends and preserve one of the first stages of life forever.

If you haven’t already got one, we highly recommend you invest in a home fetal monitor today, after all what can compare to hearing you baby’s heart beat for the very first time?