Signs of infant malnutrition

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted by Specialist Doctor II Cao Thi Thanh - Pediatrician - Pediatrics - Neonatology Department - Vinmec Hai Phong International General Hospital
The average weight of a healthy newborn at birth is 3 kg, and the height is about 50 cm. If the baby weighs less than 2.5 kg, the baby may be premature or have fetal malnutrition.

1. Signs of infant malnutrition

The average weight and height of babies are influenced by many factors. On average, the birth weight of a full-term, healthy newborn is about 3 kg at birth, and the height is about 50 cm. If the baby weighs less than 2.5 kg, it is usually premature or has fetal malnutrition.
Children's development is first assessed by weight and height.
In terms of weight, a child with normal growth has the following changes in weight:
In the first 3 months, the child grows very quickly: gaining from 1-2 kg/month. In the next 3 months, children gain from 0.5 to 0.6 kg/month. The next 6 months only increase from 0.3 - 0.4 kg/month. By the age of 1, the baby weighs 3 times as much as at birth (about 9-10 kg). From 2 to 10 years old, children gain an average of 2-3 kg. About height: Normal growth in height of the child:
In the first 3 months, the child grows from 3 cm/month. 4-6 months increase 2-2.5 cm/month. 7 - 9 months increase 2 cm/month. 10-12 months increase 1-1.5 cm/month. By the time a child is 1 year old, the height increases 1.5 times compared to that at birth (about 75 cm), then an average of 1 year children increase from 5-7 cm/year until puberty.

2. How do you know if your child is malnourished?

To know if the child is developing normally or is malnourished, parents can weigh the child regularly every month, thereby monitoring the child's development based on the growth chart:
If the child is gaining weight steadily, that's it. This is an important sign of a healthy, normally developing baby. Not gaining weight is a warning sign of poor health and nutrition, and children are at risk of malnutrition. If it is not possible to weigh the child, the measurement of the left arm can be used to assess the nutritional status of the child. Types of malnutrition
Child malnutrition commonly encountered in the community is classified into 3 types:
Underweight or low weight for age: Reflecting the slow growth of the whole process in the absence of malnutrition. prolonged nutrition, as well as undernutrition at that time. Stunted form: is a manifestation of prolonged growth retardation or a sign of growth retardation in the past. The child's height-for-age is low due to growth retardation, resulting in not reaching the average height. Underweight: reflects acute malnutrition due to failure to gain weight or is losing weight. Occurs when the child's weight-for-height indicator falls below the average value. Malnourished children need to be cared for more carefully in all aspects such as personal hygiene, food hygiene, psychological care, and treatment of diseases for children (if any). In addition, when taking care of malnourished children, it is necessary to pay attention to feeding many meals a day, a little at each meal to ensure the necessary amount of food for the child and to provide higher energy than usual.

To prevent and improve malnutrition in children, parents should supplement with supporting products containing lysine, essential micro-minerals and vitamins such as zinc, chromium, selenium, and B vitamins to help meet their full needs. meet the nutritional needs of the child. At the same time, these essential vitamins also support digestion, enhance nutrient absorption, help improve anorexia, and help children eat well. Parents can also apply dietary supplements and functional foods derived from nature for easy absorption by the baby. The most important thing is that the improvement of the baby's symptoms must take place over the long term. Combining many types of functional foods at the same time or changing many types in a short time can make the baby's digestive system unable to adapt and completely not good. Therefore, parents must be really persistent with their children and regularly visit the website vimec.com to update useful baby care information.

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