New Meghan Markle photo suggests she's further along in her pregnancy than previously thought

A photo of Meghan Markle at an event last night has emerged and seems to suggest the Duchess is further along in her pregnancy than previously thought.

The 37-year-old attended a carol concert in tribute of Prince Harry’s close friend, who died as a teenager. The event, at St Luke’s Church was organised by the Henry van Straubenzee Memorial Fund.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were spotted leaving the church by a side door, before climbing into a waiting car.

The couple haven’t been seen for a couple of weeks so fans were keen to catch a glimpse of Meghan’s pregnancy bump as she stepped out in a royal blue dress from Serephina maternity. The former ‘Suits’ actress teamed her outfit with a matching coat and a blue clutch bag.

The images prompted Twitter users to speculate how far along in her pregnancy the Duchess actually is.

In the pregnancy announcement Kensington Palace merely stated that the royal baby would be making an appearance in the spring.

So what do the experts think? Is Meghan further along in her pregnancy than previously thought?

“From the recent pictures of Meghan’s bumps it does appear that her belly button has started to protrude, so I would suspect she is at least 5 months pregnant,” says Mr Narendra Pisal, consultant gynaecologist at www.london-gynaecology.com.

“However, every woman ‘carries’ their pregnancy differently. Women who have a long abdomen, may have more space for their uterus to develop upwards rather than outwards which may give the appearance of a ‘smaller bump’.”

And what will the Duchess be experiencing at this stage of her pregnancy?

“Common pregnancy symptoms at 5 months include itchy skin, heartburn, constipation, slightly swollen hands and feet and sleeping positions become more uncomfortable,” Mr Pisal says.

“As the baby is developing and getting bigger Meghan may start to feel more movement. There is still quite a bit of wiggle room at his stage though so Meghan should be feeling the little one kicking, punching and moving around quite a lot.

“Also Meghan might be experiencing that pregnancy ‘glow’ due to the oestrogen related effects on the skin as well as increased blood flow and circulation. The body temperature is also marginally higher which aids that flushed ‘glowing’ look,” he adds.

Since announcing her pregnancy back in October, fans have been on royal bump watch.

Back in October during the royal tour of Australia, people were a tad confused about the quickly changing size of the Duchess’ stomach.

But turns out there was a medical explanation for why her bump appeared to grow, then quickly disappear within the same day.

And fans couldn’t help but notice the people couldn’t also help but notice the number of times the mum-to-be touched and cradled her growing bump during the royal tour and beyond.

But according to medical experts there are several reasons some pregnant women can’t keep their hands of their bump including bonding with their unborn baby and feeling flutterings.

The Duchess of Sussex currently does not have any upcoming public engagements in her diary, after a hectic couple of months with the royal tour, the Remembrance Day services and Prince Charles’ 70th birthday celebrations.

We may not seen Meghan until Christmas, when she and Harry are expected to join the Cambridges and the Queen at Sandringham for Christmas.

The Duke of Sussex will attend a gala performance of Bat Out of Hell in support of the Invictus Games Foundation on Thursday 6 December.

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