How much does the baby grow in the first year?

January 29, 2019

To answer the many questions that parents ask themselves when it comes to correct growth of the newborn – will he weigh enough? Will it weigh too much? Will it be high enough? How often should I weigh it? – we interviewed Dr. Loredano Guaraglia, a specialist in paediatrics. How much does the baby's weight increase in the very first days? «The first check of adequate growth coincides with the first check after discharge from the hospital, between the 11th and 15th day of the newborn's life. Already at this time, the physiology of growth varied according to the type of feeding, maternal or artificial. In the first case, post-birth weight loss can reach 10%, in the second it is more limited and does not exceed 7-8%. Consequently, the times for recovery of the weight at birth vary: precisely 14-15 days with mother's milk, 10-11 with formulated milk. Subsequently, and throughout the first trimester, a growth with breast milk of at least 120 grams per week is considered physiological. In the first month, in particular, adequate growth is 10 grams per kilogram of weight per day: thus, a child born weighing 2 kilos increases by 20 grams per day, a child weighing 4 kilos increases by 40 grams per day, and both grow physiologically. Then, each subject is a case in itself: in addition to the neonatal weight, the temperament matters a lot – the more agitated baby will face a greater caloric dispersion – the number of feedings, that of the discharges… ». Is it then possible to establish an average growth (between breast and formula feeding)? «200 grams a week in the first trimester, 150 in the second, 100 in the third and 50 in the fourth. But these are purely indicative values, and the growth is perfectly adequate even for those who do not reach these quotas, but are in full well-being and have no deficiencies». And what about the length? "The same is true here too: there are average values (+5 centimeters in the first month, +3 in the second, +2 from the third to the seventh, +1 from the eighth to the year, with reference to the WHO growth curves , the most universally used, ed), but then the variables are infinite, including factors of familiarity and constitutionality. Height growth is measured by the pediatrician with the paidometer». What are growth curves or percentiles used for?

«These are graphs that respectively represent the weight, height and head circumference growth of children, divided by sex and age (the WHO ones are organized as follows: 0-6 months, 6-24 months, 2-5 years... , ed.). They serve as benchmarks to ensure that growth is constant and regular over time within each percentile. It matters little whether you grow up at the 20th, 50th or 70th percentile: this only means that there are more or less tall or robust children; what matters, however, is that growth proceeds linearly along its curve. Furthermore, the percentiles are useful because they allow, in the presence of a slowdown, to find the point, the moment in which something has changed (a disease, the introduction of a new food...)». How often does it make sense to weigh the baby? Many parents experience the issue with apprehension, a kind of 'libra anxiety'. «In the early days, and if the child is healthy, weighing him once a week can reassure the parent. But having acquired that there is growth, ascertained the state of well-being and satisfaction of the infant and established a good knowledge with him, then the scale can be set aside, because one is able to understand by oneself if things are proceeding correctly. My advice is to disengage from the phobia of weight control and to experience breastfeeding with more serenity, especially if maternal, since feedings are necessarily all different, more or less full-bodied and frequent. By deeming growth inadequate just because the weight is low, there is a risk of wrong approaches, such as resorting to adding artificial milk even if there are no deficiencies». So, are health checks enough to weigh the baby? “Yes, they also serve this purpose. The codified ones have variable frequency: the first at 15 days after birth, then at about 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 15-18 months, and then once a year. The important thing is not to experience them with apprehension: the best doctor for the child is always the mother , who will find answers to all her questions in the relationship of communication and trust with the pediatrician". Taken from Born Mom | by Sara Lanfranchini