- This is every parents concern. usually a newborn who is mature(37 wks completed) is around 2.8 – 3.5 kg
- People traditionally refer a child should weigh this much on first birth like that.
- A newborn is considered low birth weight if he/she weighs less than 2.5 kg. we know some baies who are born premature(less than 37 completed weeks) weigh much less 1.5 or less. we refer such situations as very low birth weight. but number of children of this weight are small in number
- What is the best way to look at your kids weight.your child is unique baby . stop comparing. their baby is inheriting their potential for growth
- Most objective way of analysing weight is to look at standard deviation chart or percentile chart. Are these terms familiar to you? .WHY YOU NEED SUCH CHARTS?. A 2 yr of yours (12 kg)and 2 yr old child of your cousin(14) may have different weights but they are still growing normally . is it correct?. a standard deviation chart will show normal range of growth +2 to -2(approx. 97 % of children this age will fall in this range)
- We use growth chart of WHO(seperate for boys and girls)for our children. we can use cdc charts for children from usa,british charts for uk children. normal range is the area between two lines marked as +2to-2. below -2 to -3 is significat moderate deviation of weight from normal. less than -3 is severe weight reduction from normal
- What are the implication of moderate or severe weight reduction from normal?failure to gain weight in the first year of life, regardless of cause, is particularly ominous. Maximal postnatal brain growth occurs in the first 6 mo of life..severe weight reduction increases the chance of infections and complications
- Let us look at standard deviation charts. the x axis has your childs age . put a ruler at that point. y axis has weight . mark the the place weight meet the ruler (age). read it as normal(+2 to -2 ) -2 to -3( moderate weight reduction) less than -3 is severe weight reduction
- Let us see example. 1 1/2yr child of you weigh 9.5 kg and your cousins child of same weigh 7.5 kg , another cousins child weight 6 kg at same age
- See the example1weight 0-2 yrs girls sd for care of children
- Growth monitoring is continuous process. serial weight is meaning full than single wt. IT WOULD BE EVEN MORE REASONABLE TO COMPARE YOUR CHILD WEIGHT WITH LENGTH OF YOUR CHILD
- 1weight 0-5 yr girls percentile
- 1 WEIGHT FOR BOYS O-5 YR SD
Dr. Jayaprakash
Superintendent, ICH.
Institute of Child Health.
Gov. Medical College Kottayam.
Kerala, India.