Growth Charts

Have you ever wondered about your baby's growth and where they fall on the Pediatrician's chart for height and weight averages? I have and I wondered why my Pediatrician seemed concerned when Colin looks and acts very healthy. He is growing and learning. He is happy and he is FAT. So why the concerns at his well baby check?

The Pediatrician said that most babies will fluctuate up and down on the bell curve of weight gain... Okay. Then in the same breath, he said that Colin had gone down on the bell curve and he was concerned. "Why?", I thought, when he had just told me that it was normal for them to go up and down... weird.

So I started researching. Did you know that the graphs and charts that are commonly used in Pediatrician's offices to measure a Baby's growth (height and weight) are primarily based off of formula fed babies? It makes sense when most babies are fed, at least in part, some amount of formula before 6 months of age.

Kellymom.com has this to say on the topic:

"Healthy breastfed infants tend to grow more rapidly than formula-fed infants in the first 2-3 months of life and less rapidly from 3 to 12 months. All growth charts available at this time include data from infants who were not exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months (includes formula-fed infants and those starting solids before the recommended 6 months). Because many doctors are not aware of this, they see the baby dropping in percentiles on the growth chart and often come to the faulty conclusion that the baby is not growing adequately. At this point they often recommend that the mother (unnecessarily) supplement with formula or solids, and sometimes recommend that they stop breastfeeding altogether. Even if mom realizes that her baby is perfectly healthy and doesn't follow these unnecessary recommendations, she ends up worrying for no reason (and moms don't need anything extra to worry about!). "

You can read more HERE.

The pattern of growth that kellymom described was exactly what I have seen with Colin's growth... exactly.

Colin is exclusively breastfed so I wondered if there was a chart that more accurately depicted the normal growth pattern for a breastfed baby. And ya know what? There is! The World Health Organization published a chart for just such babies. The CDC (the US Center for Disease Control) is starting to use it and encourage Pediatricians to use it for breastfed babies, as well.

Great!

Here it is for Boys:

http://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts/data/who/GrChrt_Boys_24LW_9210.pdf

And this one is for Girls:

http://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts/data/set1clinical/cj41c018.pdf

And wouldn't you know, Colin's growth has been consistently right below the 50th percentile, all along....

When you use the correct tools for measuring things, you get a more accurate picture. Imagine that. :) Now I just have to print this puppy off and take it with me to Colin's next well child visit to show the Pediatrician. He is a healthy happy baby.