Norms for infant weight gain by month during breastfeeding, WHO table

Why watch your weight gain?

Nutrition is the main physiological need of the body. Its importance is especially important in the first year of life, when the child must receive the substances necessary for the formation of hormones, enzymes, and improvement of internal systems. The value of food is that it helps in the construction of tissues and cells, as well as their renewal.

The more complete the nutrition, the stronger the baby’s health, the better his resistance to harmful factors. Not only physical, but also mental development directly depends on the quality of food consumed.

During the first six months, a child requires a large amount of valuable substances to cover the energy costs used for adaptation, intensive growth, maintenance of vital functions, and metabolic processes.

Important! Lack or excess of nutrition leads to physical and mental disorders in the development of the baby. Natural and acquired immunity is weakened. The activity of organs providing homeostasis is disrupted.

To avoid the development of nervous and endocrine pathologies, allergies, diseases of the digestive and cardiovascular systems, it is necessary to monitor the rate of infant weight gain by month. The mother performs this function regularly, starting from the first days of the baby’s appearance in the house.

Baby's weight at discharge

Clothes sizes for newborns

The starting indicator for monitoring body weight is not the one that was at birth: the weighing figures at discharge are taken into account. All children lose weight in the first week, this is due to the natural characteristics of the body.

If, for example, the baby weighed 3.5 kg at birth, then when sent home this figure will be 200-500 g less. Mom should not worry about this - with a balanced diet, the little one will very quickly gain the necessary kilograms.

Features of weight gain in newborns

WHO has determined the average weight gain of an infant from 0 to one year. A significant difference from these boundaries indicates improper development, poor nutrition, and lack of vitamins in the baby.

Individual weight is also determined by the following factors:

• Heredity. Genetics takes its toll. Tall, big parents give birth to large children, and thin mothers/fathers give birth to miniature babies.
• Features of the baby's health.
• Bad habits that were abused by a pregnant woman.
• Gender of the baby (boys and girls have different weight standards at birth).
• Feeding (type of infant nutrition).

If the child was born healthy, then there will be no significant deviations from the WHO standard. The body weight of the baby may be slightly lower - up to 2.6 kg or higher - up to 4.2 kg.

Once born, the baby gains weight by 90-150 grams. Three days after birth, she weighs slightly less (6-10% less than her original weight). Weight loss is associated with the baby’s adaptation to the world around him and with his diet, since the mother secretes only colostrum after childbirth.

From the 2nd to the 4th month of the baby’s life, he should consistently “eat up” 150-200 grams/7 days. With each subsequent month, the size of the increase decreases to 100-140 grams. The baby's growth rate is of great importance.

Children of tall parents grow much faster (height/weight) - this is the norm. Children of delicate parents will be miniature - their height/weight will increase according to the standards prescribed for him. Body weight is not considered a separate category of health. Doctors always calculate the weight according to the baby’s height.

Table of norms for weight gain in infants – On the skin

During the first six months, the child gains about 800 grams per month. From seven months to a year, the increase decreases slightly and equals 400 grams. Each year, all children weigh differently. It all depends on the child’s living conditions and heredity.

If your child is not gaining weight well, you can calculate how much he will eat by weighing him before and after feeding. If he is malnourished, then his diet or his mother’s must be changed.

In general, in order to monitor the baby’s growth, you need a baby weight chart and a home electronic scale. It is not enough that the baby is weighed by the pediatrician once a month.

Baby's weight and height

When a baby is breastfed, he gains weight unstably, so his growth rates may differ from generally accepted norms. Don't panic when looking at the newborn weight gain chart. The standards indicated there are created for children who are fed artificial formula.

If the child is healthy, then in the first month he actively gains weight. The baby adapts to the environment, his nervous, digestive and cardiovascular systems develop, his bones grow and strengthen.

The weight and height of a baby is an indicator of its health. The baby should constantly gain grams, even if the increase is not too large, but it is there, which means everything is in order.

Norm of weight gain in infants

Up to six months, the child is actively gaining weight, gaining fat and stretching in length. Then the baby begins to sit up and acquires new motor skills, so the increase decreases slightly.

The child is interested in everything, so he does not consider it necessary to waste time on prolonged feeding. Quickly, within a few minutes, he eats and again goes to explore the surrounding reality.

And when it’s time to walk, the weight will begin to increase even more slowly.

Weight does not grow well if the baby has experienced stress, suffered from an illness, or has a hormonal imbalance. Gymnastics, massage, swimming and vaccinations also influence poor weight gain.

The rate of weight gain in infants is arbitrary. We must ensure that the child not only gains weight, but also grows in length.

Weight gain in infants by month

We can say that the baby is eating normally if he feels well and regularly empties his bowels and bladder. If parents bought electronic scales for home, this does not mean that they have to weigh the child every day.

In order to track growth dynamics, it is enough to weigh the child once a week. If your child is not eating well and is restless, he may be malnourished. Then you need to weigh him for several days before and after feeding.

This is the only way to determine whether the child is eating enough or not.

You can find out from your pediatrician how weight gain should occur in infants month by month. Norm indicators are also available in child care encyclopedias and on the Internet. The main thing is to competently approach the study of the norm. Throughout the world, the concept of norm is relative. What is normal for one is a deviation for another.

The baby is overweight

All children gain weight differently; this process is influenced by the child’s character, heredity, general health, physical activity and the number of feedings.

The high weight of a baby causes concern not only among parents, but also among the pediatrician. An overweight child puts a serious strain on the skeleton, its development slows down, and therefore doctors recommend that parents reconsider the baby’s nutritional system. If the diet does not help, then the child needs to be examined. Perhaps he has some serious endocrine disorders or diseases.

High and low weight in a child or adult is a deviation from the norm. In order to live and develop normally, you need to take care of your health.

What is excess weight in an adult? This is an inferiority complex, a load on the skeleton and heart, a problem with choosing a wardrobe, and so on.

What is excess weight for a baby? This is a sedentary lifestyle, also a load on the musculoskeletal system and heart, developmental delays, and so on. As a result, both children and adults are forced to lose weight.

If an adult’s obesity is his own choice, then the baby does not know that he weighs too much and this poses a danger to him. The task of parents is to bring the child’s weight to normal if the deviation is too great and it is not related to heredity. Loving parents understand this and will do everything that depends on them.

The baby is not gaining weight well

If a child does not gain weight well, especially in the first months of life, this is fraught with serious consequences, including death. In order for nothing to happen to the baby, you need to make sure that he pees, poops and eats regularly.

During the period of pregnancy, parents prepare the place where they will bring him after being discharged from the hospital.

If they are superstitious and don’t buy anything for the house, then they still prepare lists and look on the Internet for everything that will be needed at first. This list must include an electronic thermometer and scales.

If the baby is not gaining weight well, you can constantly weigh him and increase the quantity and quality of feedings.

Low weight may be a consequence of helminth infection or neuralgic problems. A pediatrician will help you find out the cause of the shortage. What is the point of increasing the milk supply if the child has helminths? In any matter, the problem can be solved if you understand its root cause.

The baby is losing weight

Immediately after birth, the baby is weighed. Before being discharged from the maternity hospital, the baby will lose about ten percent of the weight it had at birth.

There is no need to be afraid of this; you need to be aware of this issue and not worry. Encyclopedias on child care say that babies lose weight due to adaptation to the environment. In addition, the baby loses moisture.

He had not yet eaten fully, but he had lost meconium - the first stool, which also weighed something.

Once mother and baby are at home, the weight will rapidly begin to increase. This is influenced by a favorable home environment in which the mother feels comfortable. In addition, the breasts will develop well, and milk will flow like a river. Full-fat breast milk is the key to a child’s growth and normal well-being.

If the milk turns out to be not very nutritious and the baby does not get enough of it, you should always keep a closed artificial formula on hand. You should open it only as a last resort, persistently trying to get nutrition from your milk.

This is done with the help of special diets, which consist of veal, parsley, dill, walnuts, tea with milk and other products.

Baby scales

Electronics stores sell a huge number of different equipment, including baby scales. It's easy to get confused in this diversity.

How to make a choice? Which properties should be taken into account and which ones should not be paid attention to? Store consultants can answer these questions.

If you don’t want to waste time shopping, you can read reviews and specifications on the Internet, and then simply place an order in a virtual store.

Table scales for infants VENd-01-Malysh have gained great popularity. This model is powered by a built-in battery, has automatic zero setting, and an alarm when the battery is low and when rebooting. VEND-01-Kid determines weight in children under one and a half years old. It is used in children's clinics and maternity hospitals.

Table of norms for weight gain in infants by month

Near the end of pregnancy, most mothers begin to think about how much their future newborn weighs, because its weight is an indicator of health, as well as full intrauterine development.

Immediately after birth, each baby is examined by a neonatologist, carefully measuring his height, weight, volume of the chest and head. All these indicators eloquently tell the doctor about the state of health of the newborn and the possible presence of any pathologies.

After being born, the baby will be fed only breast milk for the first six months or, in its absence, an adapted milk formula.

In order to understand whether the baby has enough nutrition, how it is absorbed, and how the baby is developing, pediatricians measure the weight of the newborn at least once a month.

Table of weight gain for infants ↑

There is a special table of weight gain for infants by month. Based on the data in this table, you can easily understand whether your child is gaining the required weight and height. To do this, simply add to the baby’s weight upon discharge from the hospital the required number of grams corresponding to his age.

Why do they monitor weight gain in infants ↑

Immediately after the baby is born, doctors measure his weight and record it in the discharge document. Later, this figure will come in handy many times when calculating your baby’s weight gain. In the first 3-4 days of life, the newborn loses approximately 10% of its birth weight.

This happens due to the fact that during birth the baby experiences serious stress, which burns a significant amount of calories in his body, and, therefore, leads to the loss of some fat deposits.

Also, babies drink colostrum for the first 3-4 days of life, which precedes the appearance of breast milk. There is very little of this substance, so babies cannot get enough of it. Usually, by the day of discharge from the maternity hospital, that is, 4-5 days after birth, the baby’s weight has stabilized.

This figure is also carefully recorded in the statement. Later, the local pediatrician will “build on” this figure when making calculations for the child’s weight gain.

After a young mother produces milk, the baby begins to actively suck it and, accordingly, quickly gain weight. If he is gaining weight well, then the doctor will monitor his gain once a month. If the child was born premature or underweight, his growth should be monitored every 2 weeks.

The World Health Organization (WHO for short) has established certain standards for infant weight gain. It is the WHO recommendations that the doctor relies on when making conclusions about excess or insufficient weight gain in newborns.

Why is it so important to monitor your baby's weight gain? Since the child cannot yet independently tell his parents about his appetite and well-being, the weight gain indicator can do this for him.

When a baby is breastfed, it is almost impossible to determine whether he is sucking a sufficient amount of milk and whether he is full, because it largely depends on the diet of the nursing mother and the composition of her milk.

By weighing your child after 2 weeks, you will be able to understand whether he has enough nutrition, whether he is getting enough, or perhaps he needs additional formula.

The same applies to babies who are bottle-fed. Portion recommendations on formula containers are not always suitable for all children.

Source: https://mc-expert.ru/medicamenty/tablitsa-normy-nabora-vesa-u-grudnichkov.html

Table with the norm of weight gain during breastfeeding by month

The table below will help young mothers understand the approximate weight gain of infants during breastfeeding by month.

Minimal deviation from the table indicators is allowed. Pediatricians monitor the baby's development. The rate of baby weight gain by month can be influenced by many external factors:

• cold (baby refuses food);
• flatulence;
• colic.

All these circumstances affect the baby’s nutrition, so slight underweight is not considered critically by the pediatrician. Indicators of kilogram gain are considered individually, according to the weight that was recorded at the birth of the baby.

The weight of the newborn is also measured based on his height. Babies have a height of 46 cm–56 cm. Sometimes these figures are smaller or larger. Therefore, the weight of the baby will be considered by doctors individually.

Norms for weight gain and gain in infants by month (table)

From birth, the child must be weighed, his height, head volume and chest circumference are measured. These parameters are necessary to determine health status.

If there are any deviations from the norm, you need to track which organ is working incorrectly. The baby's weight is measured at least once a month.

Gain is influenced by many factors, including what kind of feeding the baby is on.

Approved parameters

The World Health Organization (WHO) has determined the norm for gaining valuable grams in children under one year of age. It is these boundaries that the pediatrician should rely on when determining the lack or excess of body weight.

How much does a child without developmental disabilities weigh at birth? According to WHO, the range from 2700 to 3700 is considered normal. But these are not final figures. The standards also determine some other factors:

• hereditary;
• characteristics of the child’s health;
• gender – girls usually have smaller height and weight;
• food products consumed by the pregnant woman;
• bad habits during pregnancy lead to underweight and short stature.

Parents can easily determine whether there is an increase in the baby’s weight and height by month. To do this you need to have a scale at home.

The resulting figures are checked against the parameters of the table. It is necessary to add the number of prescribed grams to the weight of the child, which was recorded at birth.

Table of norms for weight gain and height of children by month, approved by WHO

In the first month, the baby should gain 20 grams per day. The table shows that he should gain 600 grams per month. A smaller number is regarded as a set below the norm. Perhaps the doctor will prescribe additional examination.

How much a baby weighs depends on many factors, including the following:

• Formula-fed babies gain weight faster than breast-fed babies.
• A stable set of grams is also influenced by the fact when and how the child is fed (at will or according to a schedule).
• As you can see from the table, as the baby approaches one year of age, he begins to gain less weight. This is another feature.

It has been noticed that in the first 3 days after birth, the baby loses weight. This is due to the stress that a newborn experiences when entering a new environment. In addition, these days he eats colostrum, which is not enough. By the day of discharge, the situation has stabilized, and the baby weighs in accordance with accepted standards. It is this value that becomes the starting point for further increases.

If the baby was born prematurely or with low weight, then measurements are carried out 2 times a month, or even more often.

Boundary of normal values

How much should a baby weigh every month? There are certain boundaries approved by WHO. The table clearly shows how much a child should weigh by month, depending on gender.

There are many other ways that can help caring parents determine whether their child is meeting the normal boundaries or not. The best option is to visit a pediatrician. You can buy scales, find on the Internet a special calculator for calculating the norm of weight gain in children under one year old, there is also a calculation formula.

Methods for calculating indicators

Electronic scales will help you correctly measure your child’s body weight. For convenience, you need to have them in a house where there is a baby.

This way you can track the characteristics of children’s weight gain. Table scales VENd-01-Malysh are installed in maternity hospitals and clinics. Therefore, you can opt for this model. These scales allow you to weigh a child up to 1.5 years old.

The norm for a set of important parameters can be calculated using the formula: M=m+800n (m – birth weight, n – age). For example, the weight of a child who was born with a body weight of 3490 g at 6 months should be: 3490 + 800 * 6 = 8290 (g).

An online calculator will help you check month by month how well your baby is developing. You just need to enter the data in the columns, and the height and weight calculator will display the result. Calculations will help determine how much a baby should weigh at a particular age.

The calculator includes several columns: weight, height of the child at the moment and at birth. For calculation go here.

Sometimes you can find an additional function that the calculator has - a forecast of height and weight for subsequent years. To do this, you need to fill in the fields in which the parameters are currently entered.

The calculator can produce results in two forms: according to the standards adopted by WHO, and according to the ratio of the child’s weight to his height. The calculator allows you to calculate the rate of increase not only for newborns, but also for children over 1 year old.

What to do if you are overweight or underweight

If we are talking about overkill, then there is no need to take action right away. It is possible that in one month the baby will gain extra grams, and in another, on the contrary, he will not gain at all.

The framework established by WHO is conditional. Therefore, it is necessary to take into account the development of each child’s body individually. If over the course of a month the baby gains more grams than prescribed by WHO, you need to show him to an endocrinologist. Most often, this feature does not portend any diseases. The justification is genetic predisposition.

It is enough just to adjust the diet: eliminate night feedings, start complementary feeding not with cereals, but with vegetables. A restorative massage will also help.

The problem is much more serious when the baby does not receive the necessary grams prescribed by WHO over the months. In this case, parents need to be wary and consult a doctor.

One of the harmless reasons why the baby does not gain weight is the mother’s poor diet or taking any medications. Getting into mother's milk, they change its taste and smell.

In other cases, the cause may be diseases of the internal organs or nervous system (rickets, dysbiosis, neuralgia of the facial nerves). Additional examinations will help identify the true cause.

You should always monitor the behavior and condition of the newborn. There is no need to ignore preventive examinations by specialists, go for weighing and other measurements on time. Only in this case you don’t have to worry about the baby’s health. Experienced doctors will always notice deviations from the norm.

Source: https://grudnichky.ru/razvitie/nabor-vesa-u-grudnichkov-po-mesyatsam-tablitsa.html

How to calculate the weight of a breastfed baby

The norm for baby weight gain is easy to set independently. Each mother can independently calculate how much her baby will weigh. This indicator is calculated using a simple formula:

1. 0–6 months. The initial weight of the baby at birth is taken as an indicator, and 800x (the number of months) is added.
2. From 6 months. Initial mass + 800 * 6 + 400x (number of months).

Breasts have a discrepancy in kilograms of +/- 1 kg. If the weight gain is insignificant, the baby is inactive or suffers from frequent illnesses, then the baby does not have enough adequate nutrition. Any young mother should know the approximate growth weight of a newborn.

Analysis of newborn weight dynamics

In addition to tables, pediatricians use special graphs that track the dynamics of body weight gain from the moment the baby is discharged to a certain age. If the real curve is below the control curve, the doctor analyzes the following factors:

• what kind of lactation does the mother have;
• how high-quality is her nutrition;
• whether the woman puts the baby to the breast correctly;
• Is the baby sick and does he have worms?
• whether the regimen and number of feedings are observed or not.

For your information. The reasons for weight loss can be neurological pathology and dysbiosis, a stressful state in a nursing woman. Even vaccination can cause temporary weight loss.

For some children, the weight gain curve may be located on the graph above the norm. The reasons that influence excess weight are already discussed here:

• perhaps the mother is overfeeding the baby;
• if the child is bottle-fed, check whether the formula is selected correctly;
• determine whether there are any abnormalities in the functioning of the endocrine system;
• Is the nursing mother taking hormonal medications?

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An inactive baby who eats a lot turns into an overly well-fed baby. Therefore, you need to look for the reason for such physical inactivity. Perhaps the child has a pathology of mental development.

Should you always worry if your weight is higher or lower?

In Western pediatrics, very little attention is paid to the issue of weight standards. They believe that the main indicator is the well-being and normal development of the child, corresponding to his age. Underweight is attributed to individual characteristics, and additional examinations are carried out more likely in connection with the problem of obesity, rather than underweight.

When breastfeeding, weight gain in a baby is an individual phenomenon. Therefore, small deviations from the average norm should not frighten parents if the child feels well and develops normally. The weight of a baby is often determined not only and not so much by the quantity and quality of feeding, but also by genetic predisposition. In families prone to excess weight, children grow up plump, and in thin parents, the child may gain weight at the lower limit of the norm; weight gain in children under one year of age is only an approximate guideline for the doctor.

Dr. Komarovsky is confident that the child should be relatively thin (if thinness is not associated with diseases) and active, and warns parents against overfeeding. Therefore, the mother does not need to try to adjust the baby to general standards and force him to eat more. But it is imperative to take measures to ensure that the baby receives enough nutrition - for this you need to properly organize breastfeeding or mixed feeding if for some reason there is not enough milk and its quantity cannot be increased.

Big increase

Excessive weight gain in infants is fraught with the problem of obesity. Excess weight harms overall well-being and the functioning of internal organs. If a child gains excessive weight while breastfeeding, this is a reason to consult an endocrinologist in order to promptly detect the cause of excess weight. In most cases, an increase above the norm (remember, more than 2 kilograms per month in the first 3 months of the baby’s life) is not associated with overfeeding and has other reasons.

There is no need to limit the child’s breastfeeding, because for a breastfeeding baby they also have a psychological aspect - this is contact with the mother, practically his “safe haven”, where it is warm, cozy and safe. Studies conducted by WHO show that overfeeding a baby with breast milk is unlikely to work.

In formula-fed children, excessive weight gain is associated with a large volume of formula or improper preparation, which makes it too nutritious. Since the child does not need to make much effort to “get” it, he easily eats more than he needs, starting to gain weight. In this case, you need to focus on an exact calculation: how much formula per day does a baby of this weight need at this age. It is not advisable to feed formula on demand - unlike breast milk, overfeeding with formula is quite possible.

If the baby's weight gain is higher than normal, the mother should adjust her feeding regimen or consult a pediatrician about the amount of formula. Consultation with an endocrinologist will also be useful.

Weight deficiency

There are many reasons why a baby may not gain weight well while breastfed. It is important to identify it correctly, because this is the only way to effectively solve the problem.

If your baby is not gaining weight or gaining little weight, pay attention to the following.

• Technique for breastfeeding.

It is important to resolve this issue literally from the very first days, because incorrect attachment is fraught with trouble for both mother and child. If your baby doesn't latch on properly, it will be difficult for him to suck milk out effectively. The breast is designed in such a way that milk can only be extracted from it using a certain sucking technique. Correct latching ensures this technique, and the milk literally pours into the baby’s mouth on its own, the breasts are well emptied, and the baby receives a lot of milk in one latching.

If the attachment is incorrect, this does not happen, even if the baby is at the breast for a long time. In addition, when the attachment is incorrect, it hurts the mother during feeding, and cracks, abrasions, and abrasions may appear on the skin of the nipple. Pain during feeding is a sign that you need to pay special attention to breastfeeding.

In addition, if the attachment is incorrect, the baby will swallow air during feeding. Air takes up space in the stomach and prevents the baby from eating the right amount of milk. The air provokes excessive regurgitation, thereby reducing the amount eaten.

In most cases, latching is easy to correct, but there are situations when this is not enough: when some of the baby’s characteristics prevent him from sucking properly at the breast. Such features may be a short frenulum of the tongue - fortunately, it can be trimmed. Osteopathic problems can prevent the baby from extracting milk from the breast - the consequences of too fast or too slow labor, or an unsuccessful intrauterine position. In this case, a visit to an osteopath will make life much easier for both the baby and the mother. And then you need to work on improving your application.

If the baby sucks ineffectively, and this cannot be quickly corrected, it is necessary to supplement the baby with expressed milk or formula. A lactation consultant or a pediatrician competent in feeding management can help organize supplementary feeding and calculate its amount.

• Diseases.

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Illness in an infant can often be accompanied by some weight loss, especially if during illness he refuses to breastfeed and eats less. If, due to illness, it becomes difficult for the baby to suck, it is worth feeding him with expressed milk along with breastfeeding.

To determine the cause of the shortage, you need to notice the accompanying symptoms. For example, due to frequent regurgitation, colic and loose stools that accompany weight loss, problems with the gastrointestinal tract may be suspected. In this case, medical advice and assistance will be required. As a rule, in most situations, breastfeeding can be maintained.

• Feeding regimen.

The first recommendation for underweight is usually to increase the number of applications. You especially need to make sure that the baby actually eats and doesn’t get lazy and fall asleep on the chest without eating. In such a situation, feeding around dreams will help: it is advisable to feed the baby every time he wakes up, and at the end of each wakefulness. Also, with weak weight gain, it is imperative to maintain night feedings. The baby's dreams should not be too long. Remember that the baby can easily sleep hungry, so in a situation with low weight gain, the newborn needs to be woken up and fed as required. It is advisable that no more than 2-2.5 hours pass during the day from the end of one feeding to the beginning of another. But you can and should feed more often.

Frequent regurgitation without additional symptoms will tell the mother that some of the milk simply does not get into the baby’s stomach, so he is not gaining much weight. In this case, you should try to feed him more often, but in small portions, and be sure to wear him in a column after eating so that excess air can escape. And the problem of swallowing air is directly related to proper attachment to the breast. Spitting up a small amount after each breastfeeding is normal for babies, but if you are experiencing a lot of regurgitation along with low weight gain, this is a reason to consult a doctor.

• Hereditary factor.

A thin child in a family of slender and thin people should not cause concern - most likely, this is a hereditary trait and there is no need to try to “fatten” him if he gains weight within the WHO norm.

However, if, according to the norm tables, the baby has very low weight, despite the fact that feeding is organized correctly and the baby receives enough nutrition, you need to consult a doctor to find out the reason why the baby cannot gain weight in accordance with the norm.

Reasons for weight gain or lack thereof

Weight gain depends on the following reasons:

• Health. If the baby is sick, he eats worse.
• Appetite.
• Type of feeding: breast or artificial. When bottle-fed, babies usually gain weight faster.
• Quality and quantity of food (mother’s milk).
• Child's mobility. A person who plays sports is usually fit. Similarly, an active child is somewhat thinner than a couch potato.
• Daily routine and meals. When feeding “by the clock”, weight increases more slowly than “on demand”.
• Age. In the first months, children grow faster, but as they age, growth slows down.

Be that as it may, specialist scientists have established some average conventional indicators of norms for weight gain in newborn children.

How a newborn baby should normally gain weight and deviations from the norm

The way a baby eats and gains weight is used to judge his health and proper development.
Coming to the next routine examination with the pediatrician, the mother knows that they will begin to weigh the baby and make notes on the card, comparing its indicators with the table approved by WHO experts.

The rate of weight gain in newborns is compiled based on the nature of nutrition (natural, mixed or artificial), birth weight, genotype, allowing for slight fluctuations.

Is it worth worrying if the baby does not reach the standard numbers or, on the contrary, exceeds the norm? And is it necessary to supplement breastfeeding a child if he is not gaining well?

Normal newborn weight at birth

As soon as a child is born, doctors, after the necessary manipulations, must weigh and measure his height. 4.0 kg, or even 4.2 kg, is considered a reason for relatives to be proud. - this means a strong hero was born.

Doctors consider a normal weight to be 2.6 kg. up to 4.0 kg. with a height of 46-56 cm and their ratio, which allows you to calculate the Quetelet index. For example, the weight of a newborn is 3,350 kg. and height 52 cm. Dividing the baby’s weight by his height, the result is 64. The normal ratio is 60 - 70. This means that everything is fine with the baby.

The initial weight of a newborn depends on its:

1. Health;
2. Genotype. Moms and dads with a large physique and tall stature give birth to large children, while thin, short mothers most often give birth to small children;
3. Paula. Boys are often born slightly taller and heavier than girls;
4. Mother's nutrition during pregnancy. The passion for sweets and starchy foods leads to the fact that the fetus manages to gain a lot of weight;
5. She has bad habits. Smoking, alcohol, drugs lead to the birth of sick children with underweight;
6. Physical and psycho-emotional health of parents. If during pregnancy a woman suffered from a serious illness, experienced severe stress or shock, then this will completely affect the baby’s weight.

How much does the baby gain before being discharged?

When discharged from the maternity hospital, many mothers worry when the newborn, instead of gaining the treasured grams, loses a little.

This happens for several reasons:

1. Loss of fluid. Having begun to breathe, the child’s body loses fluid reserves through the lungs and skin, making its movement through the birth canal extremely safe. It is also freed from meconium, the original stool.
2. Establishing a diet. While the baby drinks colostrum in tiny portions, and the mother’s milk is just beginning to flow, the feeding system is being established.
3. Adaptation to new conditions. A little person, like seedlings planted in a garden bed from a greenhouse, begins to actively grow not immediately, but after a while, adapting to its environment.

When discharged from the maternity hospital, the baby's weight is lost by 5-10% of its original weight. From this figure the countdown of the growth rate for each baby begins.

Table of norms for infant weight gain by month (up to one year)

The previous mass is restored within a week, and a significant increase occurs in the first three months. The baby moves little, eats and sleeps a lot.

1. Every day a newborn gains about 20 g in the first month, 25 g in the second month, and 30 g in the third month. Some children gain 2 kg. in the first months. The minimum increase is 460 g, approximately 115 g per week.
2. From 4 months Before six months, the baby begins to move, tries to crawl, roll over, and sit. Energy expenditure increases, fat reserves are consumed, and weight gain per month ranges from 400 to 600 g. From six months to nine months the increase is even less - 300-500 g.
3. Nine months to a year - only from 100 to 300 g. As a result, its weight exceeds the original by almost 3 times.

An approximate table that mommy can use as a guide (by month)

You can calculate the mass using a special formula:

• infant 1-6 months: initial weight +800*number of months;
• after six months: initial weight +800*6+400*(number of months after 6 months -6).

Permissible fluctuations in the first year vary +/-1 kg. Breastfed babies gain about 800 - 1000g. per month for the first three, and then 600-800g.

Newborn weight loss

If the doctor and mom observe serious deviations, you need to take into account factors that contribute to weight loss:

1. Lack of nutrition. When breastfeeding a newborn, a woman may have hypogalactia - low milk production. There is an urgent need to restore lactation using any methods - from folk remedies to medications. If it is not possible to return to normal, infant formula is included in the diet. How to increase lactation
2. Incorrect application. In the maternity hospital, nannies show how to attach the baby to the breast and make sure that he grasps the nipple correctly. Sometimes the physiological features of the structure do not allow the baby to be fully fed and he, tired of sucking in vain, falls asleep from fatigue (in this case, pay attention to special pads).
3. Application frequency. The average norm is 12 attachments, and the duration of feeding is 15-20 minutes.
4. Stress and illness in the baby and mother affect milk production and the baby’s appetite. If he has suffered from an illness, restoring immunity also requires energy, which entails weight loss.
5. Physical activity. Weight loss is influenced by both infant swimming, gymnastics, massages in the first weeks and months, and learning the skills of crawling, sitting, and walking in the future.
6. Dysbacteriosis and incomplete absorption of milk.
7. Neurological pathologies. When, due to a congenital anomaly of the facial muscles and their improper coordination, the baby cannot suck properly. The feeding process is difficult and difficult for him.
8. Weight loss is sometimes triggered by vaccinations.

Important! An increase of less than 200 in the first month is life-threatening and the baby requires hospitalization. Inadequate nutrition is the cause of the development of serious diseases with serious consequences.

Sudden weight gain in newborns

May cause:

1. Hormonal imbalance. Hormone-based drugs affect lactation and can reduce the mother's milk production. If hormonal disorders occur in a child, and he is constantly gaining weight without slowing down, you should consult an endocrinologist.
2. Overfeeding. This applies to formula-fed infants. Insufficient physical activity, slow learning of new skills, long-term illness, predisposition to allergies - all this can be a consequence of an incorrectly selected mixture and excess feeding.

When the dynamics of weight gain differs significantly from the standards, you should consult a doctor and have your kidneys, heart, and thyroid examined. Pass a series of tests, take an x-ray.

The earlier diseases are identified, the easier and cheaper it will be to treat them.

When the baby is growing well, gaining weight, is active, is interested in surrounding objects, the color of his urine is transparent or light, he is happy to play and communicate with his family, then there is no reason to worry and there is no need to worry.

Source: https://my-kiddy.ru/razvitie/norma-pribavki-vesa-u-novorozhdennyh-po-mesyacam.html

What to do if your baby has poor weight gain?

What still needs to be done if the child does not gain enough grams per month? You need to notify your pediatrician that grams are gaining slowly, or there is a very low rate of gain. Mothers are especially careful about the first months of a baby’s life. If in the first 30 days the weight gain was less than 200 grams, this is a reason for hospitalization of the newborn. You should always monitor your baby's weight. Therefore, doctors recommend that especially caring mothers purchase electronic scales.

Any deviations from the norm are discussed with the newborn's attending physician. To help your baby regain weight and gain weight, you need to establish proper nutrition. If there is no adequate breastfeeding, they begin to feed the baby with infant formula. Today, these products are as close as possible to breastfeeding, plus the woman will still “transmit” her immunity through her own milk.

Mothers with insufficient lactation are allowed to use special tablets to produce breast milk. The composition of the drug allows you to increase the volume of milk - the child will eat much more densely. Pediatricians also advise putting the baby to the breast more often. The process of breastfeeding itself causes rapid fatigue. Before latching the baby, knead the breasts, express a little liquid, and “disperse” the milk so that the baby does not exert his own efforts. If milk is often absent, then complementary foods should be introduced.

The healthy development of a baby is impossible without a healthy atmosphere at home. Mom must feel balance, harmony, stress, quarrels, resentments lead to loss of milk. The child suffers twice: physically and psychologically.

The development of a child up to one year old largely depends on the diligence of his mother.

What to do if you are overweight

Overweighting a baby under one year of age is no less dangerous than underweight, but there is no need to immediately take action if the child grows obese and gains excessive weight. Perhaps within 2-3 months the baby will gain more weight, and in the following months he will not recover at all. The limits established by WHO and doctors are considered conditional, and if the weight falls under the upper limit of the norm, everything is in order.

If you gain excess weight for several months in a row, the baby should be shown to an endocrinologist. Often, the examination does not reveal pathologies, and the baby’s obesity is justified by a hereditary predisposition. It is worth giving up night feedings and starting feeding vegetables at 5-6 months, not cereals with milk. A general massage has a good effect - it helps to lose weight and strengthen the body. If a child gains a lot of weight while breastfeeding, the mother should follow a diet limiting sweet, starchy and carbohydrate foods.

We recommend reading: Baby refuses breast milk

Excess weight in an infant, as well as underweight, are a cause for concern for young parents. You need to weigh your baby monthly in order to take timely measures if the indicators are not within the normal range. But you need to remember that every baby’s body is individual, and even a slight lag in weight gain is not always considered pathological. Especially if during the examination the doctor did not find any signs of disease, and the baby himself is active, develops well, sleeps and eats.

Features of newborn weight gain

How much should a baby gain in the first month of breastfeeding? Normally, the weekly rate of body weight gain is 90-150 grams, then this figure increases, and from the second month of life the baby gains 140-200 grams. in Week. Minor deviations are not considered a pathology if the baby grows and develops correctly.

What affects the weight gain of a newborn

The rate of weight gain in a breastfeeding baby varies depending on several factors:

• gender of the baby - boys are prone to accelerated weight gain;
• heredity - the baby develops according to the build of one of the parents;
• nutrition of a nursing mother - if she does not follow a diet or takes medications, the taste of milk deteriorates, and the child eats less of it;
• type of feeding - artificial infants are often fuller than infants due to the content of sugar, fat and palm oil in the mixtures;
• feeding schedule - babies who are put to the breast on demand gain weight more actively than children who feed by the hour;
• child’s mobility – active children spend more energy and gain less weight;
• appetite - babies who do not want to actively suckle and fall asleep while breastfeeding do not receive portions of food, which explains their lack of weight;
• age – during the first 6 months the baby is actively recovering, then the indicators decrease.

Need to know! How much milk a newborn should eat depends on age and individual needs. It is better to pay attention to the quality of nutrition than to its volume - fatty breast milk contributes to weight gain, and liquid breast milk will not help the baby gain weight, even if the mother has it in excess.

Weight gain – strict norm or individual indicator

The ideal food for a newborn baby is breast milk, which contains the maximum nutrients the baby needs for growth and weight gain. To determine the rate of weight gain in a breastfed child by month, pediatricians use a table that shows the values ​​from the upper to the lower limits. The data indicated in the table was obtained during long-term studies and monitoring of the health status of newborn children.

According to these data, deviations in the weight of the baby are allowed, due to its individual characteristics. For example, a baby gaining 500 grams every month. weight is also considered healthy, like a child who gains 300 grams one month and 800 grams the next. In such situations, doctors assess whether body weight is normal based on data from the past few months.

How to calculate how much a baby weighs

To calculate the approximate body weight of a child and determine whether he is gaining weight normally during the first 6 months of life, a special formula is used: the weight that was recorded upon discharge from the hospital is plus the baby’s age in months, multiplied by 800. For example, a newborn with a weight of 3200 g. at the time of discharge, should weigh 7200 g at 5 months. (3200+5×800).

Over the next six months of life, the baby will normally gain less weight, so for children from 6 months to a year, a different formula is used to help calculate the approximate body weight: weight at discharge is added with the increase for the first 6 months of life, then the figure is added to 400 x by baby's age (-6 months). At first glance, the formula is complicated, but it is not. For example, in the first six months the baby gained 800 grams x 6 = 4800 grams. The finished figure is used to calculate the approximate weight of infants older than 6 months. Baby at 7 months who weighed 3000 grams. upon discharge, should weigh according to the formula 3000+4800+400x(7-6) = 8200 g.

Boys and girls have different weight standards

Newborn weight loss

What to do if the baby does not correspond to the approximate weight established by WHO? During breastfeeding, modern mothers do not have a sufficient amount of milk. Artificial formula nutrition is an alternative option for normal development and weight gain. The main reason for weight loss is malnutrition. Usually the mother understands that the child is hungry, since he is constantly capricious and cries for no particular reason. If there is no abundance of milk, the baby is fed with formula. This issue can be discussed with your pediatrician.

The second common reason is improper attachment of the baby. It often happens that inexperienced mothers can unknowingly contribute to poor lactation due to the incorrect position of the baby. It is necessary that the baby completely sucks the nipple area. Otherwise, he will fall asleep from active sucking, but at the same time remain hungry. From infancy, the baby is allowed to sleep next to its mother so that it always has access to breast milk.

The third, main reason is non-compliance with norms by young mothers. A woman should put her baby to her breast 12-14 times a day. Feeding time is at least 15 minutes. Other reasons include:

• dysbacteriosis;
• low activity;
• neurological diseases;
• constant stress of the mother (lactation decreases).

When the baby does not eat enough through breastfeeding, complementary feeding should be introduced using store-bought milk for infants. The formula is better for a newborn if the mother does not have sufficient lactation or is ill. Treatment in adults occurs by taking pills, so breastfeeding is contraindicated due to the introduction of synthetic substances into breast milk.

Newborn weight reference point

The baby’s adaptation to life in a new environment is an adaptation period, during which he loses weight. When discharged from the maternity hospital (3-4 days after birth), the baby will weigh 5-8% less due to fluid loss and other factors, which will be discussed below. Therefore, the body weight of the newborn upon discharge from the maternity hospital is taken as the initial weight reference point.

How much does a baby weigh at birth?

The starting point is how much the baby weighs when discharged from the hospital.

The baby is weighed immediately after birth. How much should a baby weigh who has no recorded abnormalities in intrauterine development? Indicators approved by the Health Organization range from 2700 g. up to 3700 grams, but in recent years the number of children born with a body weight of more than 4000 grams has increased, and this is not considered a pathology.

Birth weight depends on several factors:

• genetic predisposition;
• health status of the newborn;
• gender (girls weigh less than boys);
• woman's nutrition during pregnancy;
• the presence of bad habits in the expectant mother (smoking and alcohol provoke prematurity and the baby’s weight loss).

On a note! If the baby was born with a weight at the lower limit of normal (2700-2750 grams), but is healthy, and the mother ate properly during pregnancy and did not drink alcohol, doctors assess the baby’s condition as normal.

Upon discharge

After birth, over the next 5-7 days of life, the baby’s weight decreases by 5-8%, which is the norm. This fact is explained as follows:

• the mother has not yet established lactation;
• a clear feeding regimen is not organized;
• meconium (original feces that fills the baby’s intestines) is excreted from the body;
• drying out of the remaining umbilical cord.

During childbirth, the child experiences severe stress, and adaptation to new conditions occurs over the next 7-10 days of life, during this period the weight should be restored to its original weight. The fact that at discharge the baby weighs less than at birth is not considered a pathology, but rather the norm.

Boys and girls: is there a difference in increase

Of course, boys and girls gain weight differently.
In infancy, boys almost always outstrip girls in both height and weight, which is why tables with standards provide different graphs for both. In order to find out how much a girl should weigh, you need to find exactly the “girl’s” chart so as not to panic and try to fatten her up to boy standards. WHO specifically issues standards for boys and girls separately.

Of course, here everything is very individual - there are large girls and fragile boys, the constitution, as already mentioned, often depends on genetics. Therefore, you don’t need to look up to your neighbors and playmates. Each baby has its own, individual development program, and parents only need to create conditions to ensure that the baby receives enough nutrition and make sure that weight gain fits into age norms for his gender.

Table: norms of monthly and weekly weight gain up to 2 years

From six months, the normal weight gain and growth of boys and girls is practically the same.
In addition, children gain weight more evenly, so for all weeks of the month the weight gain is approximately the same. Weight gain of children under 2 years old, in grams

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The 7th month is the period from 6 to 7 full months.

* Gain from birth to 6 months depends on the sex of the child, so it is shown in a separate table.

* Why weight gain is outside the norm.

Features of gain in premature babies

Babies born between 28 and 38 weeks of pregnancy are considered premature if their weight is less than 2.5 kg and their height is less than 45 cm. Such babies differ in appearance from babies born at term:

• they have loose, wrinkled, inelastic skin;

Premature baby

• subcutaneous tissue is poorly developed or completely absent;
• the body is covered with primordial fluff;
• the head is larger in proportion to the body;
• nails are soft, thin, not fully formed.

These differences make it difficult to diagnose the correct development of a baby based on external signs (especially at first). Therefore, constant monitoring of body weight is mandatory. They compare not only the weight gain week by week, but also take into account the pace of development:

• by 2-3 months the newborn needs to double its weight;
• by six months - increase it 4 times from the initial figure.

If the baby develops normally mentally and physically, then by the age of one year, according to weight standards, he will catch up with full-term peers.

For this purpose, it is recommended to introduce complementary foods to breastfeeding prematurely born babies earlier than prescribed. If weight gain is poor, cottage cheese is added to the baby's menu (2-3% of the daily diet). It is recommended to alternate breastfeeding with formula milk. Complementary foods introduced from 5 months of age should be higher in calories than those that full-term babies receive.

Schedule for premature babies

If a child was born premature, the rate of development of the body directly depends on the weight of the child at birth. Normal weight gain will have the following values:

During the first year of life, the little person’s body develops rapidly.

A good way to monitor whether he is getting enough nutrients is to track his weight gain and compare it with normal values. If a child is gaining weight slowly or too quickly, this is a reason to consult a pediatrician.

Child weight table by age

Try not to focus too much on weight as the only indicator of physical development. Other indicators that indicate physical development include the child's height and head circumference. The combination of these three measurements gives an idea of ​​how a child is growing compared to other children of the same age and gender.

During the first 6 months of life, babies grow and gain weight quickly. Then weight gain slows down a little and averages 85 - 150 grams per week for a child 6-18 months old. Babies triple their birth weight by the first year of life. However, infants may not weigh as expected. Some children gain weight slowly. In other cases, the baby's weight will increase quickly, which may signal a growth spurt. Growth spurts can happen at any time.