Growth
Children grow in spurts and need energy, sleep and nutrients to do so – which is why, when it comes to weight, the rule is to grow into it rather than lose it.
Ausführlich erklärt
Growth is a child's body's most important job – and the reason why completely different rules apply to children than to adults. In their first year of life, a baby grows around 25 centimetres, in the second about 12 and in the third about 8. After that, growth continues at roughly 5 to 6 centimetres a year until puberty. During the big growth spurt of puberty, girls gain about 8 to 9 centimetres a year for a while, boys about 9 to 10. Girls usually reach their full height at around 16, boys at around 18 – some a little later.
Growth costs energy and building materials: protein for muscles and organs, calcium and vitamin D for bones, iron for blood. That's why children and teenagers have higher requirements relative to their weight than adults – and why a calorie deficit only makes sense for a growing child in exceptional cases and only with medical supervision. Eating too little for long periods during the growth phase risks slowing down growth and development.
This leads to the most important principle for families with an overweight child: grow into it rather than lose weight. If weight stays stable for a few months while the child grows taller, BMI falls all by itself. Exercise, water instead of sugary drinks, enough sleep and regular meals are the most important building blocks for this.
Growth doesn't happen evenly. Before a spurt, many children are suddenly hungrier and look a little rounder for a while before shooting up. This is normal and no reason to cut portions. Growth hormone is also released mainly at night, especially in deep sleep shortly after falling asleep – so enough sleep is part of growing.
The percentile charts in the child health booklet show whether everything is on track. If a child drops significantly below their curve or grows noticeably slowly, that's a question for the paediatrician.