Why is measuring and monitoring a child’s growth important?

 Health care caregivers universally use growth to judge the physical condition of babies and children: poor growth in early life has a negative impact on cognitive development and morbidity, whereas rapid and excessive growth is associated with a higher prevalence of obesity and cardiovascular disease. Early childhood development is arguably the most critical period of life. Good and bad early experiences lay the foundation for a child's future survival, growth, health, and wellbeing. 

 Research has consistently shown that good early childhood development will directly impact a child's long-term health outcomes and will improve future opportunities, school attainment, and even earning potential. This period's significant impact on a child's emotional and social development is vital for their future confidence, communication, relationships, community inclusion, and mental health. 

Measuring and monitoring the weight and height of a child is a proper method of assessing their wellbeing.  A child’s growth chart are a representation of the normal distribution of the heights and weights of children. By plotting and comparing height and weight chart for boys, you can determine whether the child is following an expected growth pattern. There are different growth charts for boys and girls as growth rates differ between genders. 

Weight is mostly used by parents and HCPs alike to measure growth in infancy. When assessing a toddler's growth, both weight and height should be measured. Measurements of weight and height at intervals of about three and six months, respectively, are needed to provide meaningful information about the growth rate. 

Measuring weight 

In the first two years of a child, poor weight gain raises most concerns. Monitoring of weight chart by age should start with a check of the current measurement, a review of previous weight measurements, the social and domestic environment of the child, and most importantly, a review of their nutritional intake. Each primary care clinic may have its routine for managing the children whose weight appears to increase or decrease faster than expected. A fall across two centile spaces is an indication of possible weight faltering. If a child is close to the 50th centile and then drops to the 9th, this may warrant concern. 

Measuring height 

Measuring children with any clothing can distort the hips and shorten the length. Two people are needed to obtain length measurement – one to support the child's head against the headboard of the device and one to gently flatten the knees and flex the ankles of the toddler to 90 degrees and bring the footboard up to the flat soles of the flexed feet. Measure the length to the nearest 1/2 cm. Readings in a specialized unit by experienced staff may be taken to the nearest millimeter. If the parent is helping, they should hold the child's head against the board. When a child reach 24 months of age, you can measure their standing height. The child should stand straight with their heels, buttocks and shoulders touching the measuring device, looking straight ahead.  Maximize height by lifting the head slightly, putting fingers under the jawline just below the ears (known as the mastoid process), and measuring to the nearest millimeter. 

 

The physical development of young children directly affects their overall development and the adult they will become. Understanding the need to invest in balanced diet chart for kids is essential to maximize their future wellbeing. 

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