After the first cry, an important indicator of its development for a newborn baby is height and weight. At different stages of life, the child has jumps in growth and, conversely, recessions. But the most significant is the first year, when the baby grows most intensively, and already in this period you can judge his state of health.
Growth as a key indicator of a child’s physical health
Height and weight are standard indicators that indicate the correct development of the baby. They are fixed immediately after birth and monitored for their increase throughout the life of the child. Weight is an indicator, rather, of the harmonious development of the baby. But growth reflects the level of physical development.
Further, it is the rate of increase in body length that allows you to find deviations in the health of the child. Identified disorders, such as stunted growth, an inharmonious ratio of length to body weight, are often the first symptoms of a chronic disease. In order to timely detect the onset of the disease and ensure timely treatment, it is important to monitor growth rates.
1 year old children
As a rule, at birth, the growth of the child is from 46 to 56 cm. In the first year of life, a certain pattern is observed in the increase in the length of his body. The growth rates for months are presented in the table.
Child (1 year): monthly growthAge | Monthly growth, cm | Total increase in growth, cm |
one | 3 | 3 |
2 | 3 | 6 |
3 | 3 | 9 |
4 | 2,5 | 11.5 |
5 | 2,5 | 14 |
6 | 2,5 | 16.5 |
7 | 2 | 18.5 |
eight | 2 | 20.5 |
9 | 1,5 | 22 |
ten | one | 23 |
eleven | one | 24 |
12 | one | 25 |
The table shows that in the first 12 months of his life, the child gains about 25 cm. This is the maximum possible jump in such a short time. Further, such a rapid increase in body length can be observed only during puberty.
Growth rates in the first year of life
To monitor whether the child is developing correctly, special standards established by the World Health Organization (WHO) help pediatricians and parents . The last time the standard indicators were revised in 2006. WHO standards for boys and girls are developed separately, which is related to the peculiarities of their development.
Growth rates for boys under 1 yearAge in months | The child is 1 year old (cm). The boys |
Low | Within normal limits | Tall |
0 | 44.2-46.1 | 49.9 ± 1.9 | 53.7-55.6 |
one | 48.9-50.8 | 54.7 ± 1.9 | 58.6-60.6 |
2 | 52.4-54.4 | 58.4 ± 2.0 | 62.4-64.4 |
3 | 55.3-57.3 | 61.4 ± 2.0 | 65.5-67.6 |
4 | 57.6-59.7 | 63.9 ± 2.1 | 68.0-70.1 |
5 | 59.6-61.7 | 65.9 ± 2.1 | 70.1-72.2 |
6 | 61.2-63.3 | 67.6 ± 2.2 | 71.9-74.0 |
7 | 62.7-64.8 | 69.2 ± 2.2 | 73.5-75.7 |
eight | 64.0-66.2 | 70.6 ± 2.2 | 75.0-77.2 |
9 | 65.2-67.5 | 72.0 ± 2.3 | 76.5-78.7 |
ten | 66.4-68.7 | 73.3 ± 2.3 | 77.9-80.1 |
eleven | 67.6-69.9 | 74.5 ± 2.3 | 79.2-81.5 |
12 | 68.6-71.0 | 75.7 ± 2.4 | 80.5-82.9 |
The data presented provide comprehensive information on the development of boys. The difference in body length in children of different sexes is noticeable when reading the following table.
Growth rate for girls under 1 yearAge in months | Growth of children in 1 year (cm). Girls |
Low | Within normal limits | Tall |
0 | 43.6-45.4 | 49.1 ± 1.8 | 52.9-54.7 |
one | 47.8-49.8 | 53.7 ± 1.9 | 57.6-59.5 |
2 | 51.0-53.0 | 57.1 ± 2.0 | 61.1-63.2 |
3 | 53.5-55.6 | 59.8 ± 2.1 | 64.0-66.1 |
4 | 55.6-57.8 | 62.1 ± 2.2 | 66.4-68.6 |
5 | 57.4-59.6 | 64.0 ± 2.2 | 68.5-70.7 |
6 | 58.9-61.2 | 65.7 ± 2.3 | 70.3-72.5 |
7 | 60.3-62.7 | 67.3 ± 2.3 | 71.9-74.2 |
eight | 61.7-64.0 | 68.7 ± 2.3 | 73.5-75.8 |
9 | 62.9-65.3 | 70.1 ± 2.4 | 75.0-77.4 |
ten | 64.1-66.5 | 71.5 ± 2.5 | 76.4-78.9 |
eleven | 65.2-67.7 | 72.8 ± 2.5 | 77.8-80.3 |
12 | 66.3-68.9 | 74.0 ± 2.6 | 79.2-81.7 |
As the data in the tables show, boys are born slightly higher than girls. This pattern persists until puberty. During this period, girls are distilled in growth. In the future, the pattern is restored: men are usually higher than women.
How fast does a child grow after one year?
Rapidly growing child exclusively in the first year of his life. Further, the rate of increase in the length of his body slows down. The child’s growth after 1 year will not increase so quickly, and sometimes irregularly: 5-6 years, for girls 11-13 years old, for boys 13-15 years old.
The growth rate is still slightly maintained after the first birthday, but then gradually decreases until puberty. For example, a child’s height is 1.5 years compared with a one-year-old baby by 6 cm more, up to 2 years old it increases by the same amount. Then, up to 3 years, children become 6 cm higher. Further, for some children, the length of the body will increase in a certain pattern or spasmodically. On average, children will add 4-6 cm per year before the onset of
adolescence .
What determines the growth of the child?
Certain factors influence the baby's growth rate . Some of them are permanent and cannot be adjusted, for example, heredity. Others relate to variables. With the right approach and timely assistance rendered in the future, it is possible to ensure the harmonious growth of the child.
The leading factors that affect the increase in the length of the baby's body:
- heredity;
- food;
- sleep;
- health status;
- place of residence, nationality.
Moreover, the growth of children in 1 year is more dependent on nutrition. Inadequate intake of nutrients is the main reason for the child's developmental delay. This applies to both the length of the body and the weight of the baby. When breastfeeding, measures should be taken to increase the amount of milk, otherwise feed with mixtures.
Growth disorders in children
Failures in the rate of increase in the length of the child’s body are associated with growth hormone deficiency. Such a problem can be treated by an endocrinologist. But there are diseases associated with disorders in the genetic cells. As a result of this, there are diseases that can not be treated: gigantism and dwarfism.
In the first case, the child's body produces an excessive amount of growth hormone, in the second - insufficient. The growth of children in 1 year is added in accordance with the standards, and then failures are revealed. With gigantism, they are already visible at the age of 5 years, with dwarfism - about two years.
Timely diagnosis allows you to assess the level of physical development and take measures to eliminate the identified diseases. If in the second year of life the child will add less than 5 cm per year, then it is worth the alarm and take appropriate measures.
Parents should not worry if the indicators of growth in weight and weight by months will deviate somewhat from the norm. Each child is an individual, assessing the state of his health in general, it is important to consider not only the data in the tables, but also certain factors that affect the increase in the length of the baby’s body.