Increasing the weight of the newborn
In the first 2-3 days of life the weight of the newborn decreases by 150-200 g, which is due to the physiological characteristics of the child and the lack of milk in the mother in the first days after birth( physiological weight loss).By the end of the first or the second week the weight of the child reaches the initial and in the future continuously and intensively increases.
In the first 3 months of life, on average, boys gain weight 800-850 g per month, girls 750.
At the age of 3 to 6 months, the average monthly gain is 720-690 g, aged 6 to 9 months- 480-450 g and in the last quarter of the year - 300 g per month.
The initial weight of the child is doubled to 5 and even to 4.5 months of life.
By the year the child's weight increases threefold and averages 10 kg. After a year, the weight increases more slowly.
For the second year of life the weight of the child is increased by 2.5-3 kg. After 2 years and before puberty, the average weight gain is 2 kg per year.
The average weight of a child in preschool and early school age is determined by the formula:
X = 10kg + 2 n ,
where n is the number of years.
Example. A child at the age of 10 years weighs: 10 kg + 2 x 10 = 30 kg.
By the age of 6, the weight of a year-old child doubles( on average it is 20 kg), by 13-14 years it doubles again( 40 kg).
With the onset of puberty( 14-15 years for boys and 12-13 years for girls), the annual increase in weight increases significantly and reaches 4-6 kg or more per year.
For weighing small children, the so-called baby scales are used. They are convenient because the scales are like a trough, where the weighted child can lie without support. The baby is undressed and placed on a clean, pre-weighed diaper, the weight of which is subtracted from the obtained figure of the child's weight along with the diaper. In the children's polyclinic, the scales are placed either in the doctor's office or in the booth but in the education of a healthy child. Children of the first half of life are recommended to weigh twice a month, and in the first weeks of life( before breastfeeding) - weekly. In the second half of the year and further up to 3 years - once a month. For weighing older children use conventional medical scales. Such scales should be in every child's institution( polyclinic, kindergarten, school, sanatorium, hospital, etc.).In the kindergarten, children are weighed monthly, in the hospital, and sanatoriums - weekly. The weight of healthy school-age children is controlled at least 2 times a year - during an in-depth examination at school and in a summer camp( or in a polyclinic).