Pregnancy
How does a person get pregnant?
Females have eggs inside their bodies, and males have sperm. If you have sex (vaginal intercourse), a male can release sperm inside your vagina. If one of the sperm reaches one of your eggs, the egg can get "fertilized". The fertilized egg will then get stuck (implanted) in the thick, bloody lining of your uterus. If that happens, the fertilized egg and lining stay inside your uterus, and you won't get your period (no menstrual fluid will pass out of your body). Instead, the fertilized egg will grow inside of your uterus. The fertilized egg is called a "fetus" as it begins to develop some of the parts of a real baby. A woman is pregnant when a fetus is growing inside of her uterus. It usually takes about 9 months for a fertilized egg to develop, first into a fetus, then into a baby that is ready to be born.
Glossary
Uterus: The organ inside your belly where your period (menstrual fluid) collects, and where a baby grows if you get pregnant.
Ovaries: Two small, bumpy structures, one on each side of your uterus, where your body stores eggs. You have had your ovaries and eggs since you were born.
Egg: Single cells, stored in your ovaries. When you start puberty, your body starts releasing one egg per month. If the egg does not get fertilized by a sperm, you don't get pregnant, and you will get your period.
Sperm: Single cells, made and stored in a male's testicles, and released through the penis.
Fetus: When a fertilized egg starts growing some of the parts of a baby, it is called a fetus.
Updated: 2/9/2009
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