Libra alone is not enough. In fact, an accurate evaluation includes the relationship between weight, height, age and sex of the child, and the possibility of following the growth of the baby over time
Valentina’s parents, a 5 -year -old girl, are worried: she is the lowest in the class and according to them even too lean. The pediatrician, after having measured it thoroughly, reassures them: Valentina is in a low percentile, but its growth has a regular trend over the years. There is therefore no reason for alarm.
But what does it mean to grow according to the percentiles? And above all, how is the ideal weight of a child calculate?
Weight and height of children: what to pay attention to
When we talk about a child’s weight, it is not enough to look at the number marked on the scale and relate it to its age: the weight must in fact always be evaluated in relation to the height, age and sex. For this reason, pediatricians use standardized tools such as growth curves and body mass index (BMI), which allow you to understand if the development is in line with the expected one. Even parents’ stature provides important indications: a child with rather low parents, for example, will generally have more content growth values than peers.
The growth curves, developed by the World Health Organization (WHO), show the typical trend of weight and height in healthy children. The important thing is not to be in a “high” or “low” percentile, but that growth is harmonious and constant over time. If the value drops under the 3rd centle or exceeds the 97th centile, the pediatrician may suggest insights. It does not automatically mean that there is a problem: the evaluation also takes into account the weight/height ratio, the growth of growth over time, the health conditions of the child and the stature of the parents.
The BMI (Body Mass Index), or body mass index, is a value that is obtained by dividing the weight (in kg) for the square of the height (in meters). In children, unlike adults, the absolute number is not enough: we must compare it with the reference values for age and sex. It should also be remembered that BMI is a tool valid only from 2 years of age; In younger children (from 0 to 24 months), instead the tables of the centils for weight and length are used.
Table for the weight of children
One of the most used tools to evaluate growth is the weight table of children, which collects the average reference values for all ages, distinct between males and females. These tables do not serve to determine with rigidity how much a child “must” weigh, but to offer a comparison parameter: a weight slightly above or under the average can be completely normal, if the development is harmonious and constant.
It is important to emphasize that the child’s form weight is not a unique number valid for everyone, but an interval within which most of healthy children falls within. Each organism has its own times and its constitution, and a more long -long or more robust child can be perfectly healthy.
To make the consultation clearer, we report here an orientative table of the weight values divided by age and sex.
| Age (years) | Average weight male (kg) | “Normal” interval | Average females weight (kg) | “Normal” interval |
| 1 | 10.5 | 9 – 12 | 9.8 | 8.5 – 11.5 |
| 2 | 12.5 | 11 – 14.5 | 12 | 10.5 – 14 |
| 3 | 14.5 | 13 – 17 | 14 | 12.5 – 16.5 |
| 4 | 16.3 | 14.5 – 18.5 | 15.5 | 14 – 18 |
| 5 | 18.5 | 16.5 – 21.5 | 17.5 | 15.5 – 20.5 |
| 6 | 20.5 | 18.5 – 24 | 19.5 | 17.5 – 23 |
| 7 | 22.5 | 20.5 – 27 | 21.5 | 19.5 – 26 |
| 8 | 25 | 23 – 30 | 24 | 21.5 – 28.5 |
| 9 | 28 | 25 – 33 | 27 | 24 – 32 |
| 10 | 31 | 28 – 36.5 | 30 | 27 – 35 |
As you can see, the normality bands are wide: a child can be at the bottom or higher limit and still grow in full health. For this reason, the table must always be interpreted with the help of the pediatrician, who knows the growth story of the single child and can evaluate over time if the curve followed is regular.
Recall that the table is only a point of reference. What really matters is that the child is healthy, lively, and with regular growth.
How to read the growth centiles
When we talk about growth, we not only use the average values but, as already mentioned, even the centils (also called percentiles). A Centile indicates the position of the child compared to a representative sample of peers of the same sex. For example, if a child is at 60 ° centile weight, it means that, out of 100 children of his age and sex, on average 59 weigh less than him and 40 weigh more.
This does not mean that children must “be in the center” of the curve: a child who always grows around 15 ° or 85 ° centile can be perfectly healthy, the important thing is that his growth is stable and regular over time.
Conclusions: the weight is not all
It is natural for parents to worry if your child seems too thin or too robust, especially when they compare it with peers. In reality, what matters is not so much the isolated value on the scale, but the trend of growth over time and the global well -being of the baby, which includes:
- energy;
- appetite;
- sleep;
- motor and cognitive development.
Being above or below average does not automatically mean having a health problem. Many children grow permanently on low or high centiles without any negative consequence. Only in the presence of significant deviations (for example under the 3rd or above 97 ° Centile) or rapid and sudden increases, the pediatrician will evaluate if insights are needed. The fundamental message is therefore this: growth must always be interpreted by the pediatrician, who knows the clinical and family history of each individual child. The task of mothers and dads is therefore not to pursue the alleged “ideal weight” of children but to encourage healthy habits – balanced diet, regular physical activity, adequate sleep – and guarantee a peaceful living environment.
