Why should you be monitoring your child's growth?

Byshaheen shaikh

Some of the best pediatricians in Hyderabad will tell you all the reasons why growth monitoring should be included in your child’s routine. When you monitor growth, you take measurements of your child’s height, weight, and head circumference to monitor his/her growth. This is a regular practice in many children’s hospitals in Hyderabad.

With each passing day, your baby grows bigger. In the process, they also develop new capabilities every day. Hence, keeping a tab of their growth is important. It helps both – parents and doctors know how well the child is growing up.

In this article, we will discuss the following points:

  • Importance of growth monitoring
  • Decoding the growth chart

Why is growth monitoring important?

Growth monitoring assessment gives you sight on the overall well-being of your child. Some reasons which makes growth monitoring essential are:

  • Detecting illness at an early stage:
  • The regular check-ups come handy, especially while detecting any signs of long-term illnesses in your child. With this information, the disease/illness can be treated at an early stage, ensuring your child leads an illness-free life.
  • Detects overall development: 
  • In the early months, it is imperative that you check your child’s visual and hearing abilities and motor skills for their development at a normal pace. This also allows your child’s doctor to ensure your child is healthy.
  • Keeps a tab on developmental milestones:
  • Growth charts or monitoring of growth allows you to keep a tab on cognitive, emotional, language, and physical developmental milestones. While the pace may vary from child-to-child, certain milestones need to be achieved at a certain age. If your child does not meet the basic growth, then it may mean growth deficiency. Don’t worry, many growth deficiencies are treatable at an early stage and most children’s hospital in Hyderabad sophisticated treatments too.

How does home monitoring with growth chart work?

Growth charts are simple to follow. All you must do is – remember the three important elements while monitoring your child’s growth:

  • Weight
  • Height
  • Head circumference

World Health Organization (WHO) has a standard height and weight parameters set for children of all ages. You will receive these parameters from your child’s pediatrician. These parameters change for different ages and genders. Hence, if there’s a slight difference in the measurements of your child and the ones prescribed by WHO, do not panic. In case the difference is consistent or increases every month, then consult your child’s pediatrician.

Follow the steps below to read your child’s growth chart appropriately.

Step 1:

Note the measurements for all the columns, such as height and weight.

Step 2:

Refer the WHO chart for ideal measurements. WHO has two charts – one for boys and the other for girls.

Step 3:

Check the charts and mark your child’s reading.

 While growth is generally checked during the routine check-ups conducted by the best pediatrician in Hyderabad, you can also check it at home. This will help you to keep a better tab of your child’s growth.