Growth in children is important as it is an indicator of general health. In general, a child who grows and develops normally compared to his/her peers is healthy. Therefore, in order to follow the growth of children, height, weight and head circumference measurements should be taken at regular intervals.
Babies are generally checked for their growth and development at regular intervals from birth until the age of 1. However, families may disrupt the control of their children after the age of 1. Since growth and development continue until puberty is completed, it is important for families to have their children checked. Because many diseases are diagnosed early and treated successfully during check-ups. Otherwise, it may be too late and irreversible problems may arise.
Families measuring and noting their children's height, body weight and head circumference at home can provide very valuable information during doctor's visits.
When measuring children's body weight, the scale setting should be reset and they should be weighed under the same conditions each time (before feeding, with a dry diaper, wearing only underwear and not moving much, etc.). If available, the baby can be weighed with a scale or by holding him/her on his/her lap. If the child can stand, he or she can be weighed alone.
The child's height can be measured at home with a tape measure. Children under 2 years of age should be measured while lying down. For this reason, you should lie on your back on a flat surface and make sure that your whole body is completely touching the floor. Then, the points where the head and heel are located should be marked and the distance between them should be measured. Children over 2 years of age can measure their height while standing against a wall. However, when doing this, make sure that the most protruding area behind the child's head, shoulders, back of the legs and heels are touching the wall. The heels should be adjacent to each other and the head should be upright.
When measuring the child's head circumference, this measurement should be made with a tape measure from the most protruding point of the bone at the back of the head, over the ears and eyebrows.
The child's height, weight and head circumference should be measured at home and the child's growth and development should be followed. In this way, both the child's It has been shown to be healthy and early diagnosis and treatment of diseases is possible.
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