Growing, growing, gone!

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By: Dieter Wolke

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Article Summary

An important part of your child's health record is his growth chart. Children who are growing at the expected rate and whose height or length and weight are fairly well matched are generally healthy. Your baby's height and weight will be monitored on a percentile chart such as the ones below by your health visitor or GP. Over time, your doctor will be able to see whether your baby is growing at the expected rate. This chart will help you follow your child's growth along with the doctor.

As your GP will tell you, healthy children come in lots of different sizes and the band of what's considered "normal" growth is very wide. Many children, for example, move their place on the growth chart at about 6 months as they start to reflect the build they've inherited from their family. Earlier, their growth reflected how they grew before birth and their nutrition in the first few months. Breastfed babies are slightly fatter in the first few months and relatively thinner later on in the first year than children fed exclusively with formula. And some families have fast-growing babies, while others have slow and steady gainers. So bear these individual differences in mind as you follow your child's growth.

The charts below show the average growth patterns of boys and girls. In fact there is rarely a single baby that grows as the average (50th percentile) line. There is a wide range of what's normal. Use these charts that are the same as in most Personal Child Health Records that you will have been given to monitor your own baby's growth and take any questions or concerns to your child's health visitor or GP.

To briefly explain, the 50th percentile line (line in the middle of the graph) indicates that out of 100 babies at any given age, 50 will weigh more or be taller than the baby on the 50th percentile and 50 will be lighter or smaller. You should consult your health visitor or GP if your baby's statistics fall to the bottom of the graph and definitely contact your doctor if he is below the 2nd percentile.

Click to select Height or Weight Chart.

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