How Should Children’s Height and Weight Index Be?

Height and weight index in children is one of the most important data about development. In order to always have it at hand, in our article, we have given you advice on child development with a height-weight chart for boys and girls. We explained how to calculate the height and weight of boys and girls. Come on, examine it!

Below you can see the height and weight index tables for boys and girls. But before we start, we should say that every child’s development is different. Child height and weight index; may vary depending on geography, culture level, feeding pattern and genetic characteristics. In addition, gender also causes different results to appear on the height and weight chart in children. 

Height and weight chart for boys

In the table below, you can see the ideal ratios that should be according to age in the boy’s height and weight development.

Age	Height (average)	Weight (average)
1 year	74,1 cm	10,6 kg
2 years	86,8 cm	12,6 kg
3 years old	95,4 cm	14,8 kg
4 years old	102,5 cm	16.8 kg
5 years old	109,1 cm	18,6 kg
6 years old	116,1 cm	20,7 kg
7 years old	120,5 cm	23,2 kg
8 years old	126,9 cm	25,9 kg
9 years old	132,1 cm	28,8 kg
10 years	137,6 cm	32,2 kg
11 years old	143,8 cm	37,8 kg
12 years	150,6 cm	44,3 kg
13 years	157,7 cm	49,8 kg
14 years	164,9 cm	56,2 kg
15 years	170,3 cm	62,1 kg
16 years old	173,4 cm	66,2 kg
17 years	175,0 cm	69,2 kg
18 years	176,2 cm	71.8

girl height weight chart

You can see the ideal ratios for girls’ height and weight development in the table below.

Age	Height (average)	Weight (average)
1 year	75,1 cm	9,3 kg
2 years	86,8 cm	11,9 kg
3 years old	95,4 cm	14,1 kg
4 years old	102,5 cm	16,1 kg
5 years old	109,1 cm	18,4 kg
6 years old	115,1 cm	20,6 kg
7 years old	121,1 cm	22,9 kg
8 years old	126,7 cm	25,7 kg
9 years old	132,1 cm	28,9 kg
10 years	137,9 cm	32,6 kg
11 years old	145,4 cm	38,2 kg
12 years	153,1 cm	45,1 kg
13 years	157,8 cm	50 kg
14 years	160,4 cm	53,3 kg
15 years	161,7 cm	55,3 kg
16 years old	162,4 cm	56,3 kg
17 years	162,7 cm	57,2 kg
18 years	163,1 cm	58,1 kg

How to calculate height and weight in children?

Body mass index, or “height weight index”, is a value that measures the balance between a child’s height and weight. When calculating height and weight for girls and boys, first of all, height and weight are measured. Then the square of the height is calculated. The child’s weight value is divided by the square of the height measurement. This value gives the body mass index.

What you need to know about child development

• Physical development is related to motor skills. Motor skills are divided into two as coarse and fine. Gross motor skills are physical movements (such as walking, crawling) that move large muscle groups. Fine motor skills, on the other hand, are movements that work with smaller muscle groups, such as grasping and writing. Progression of these two skills as expected according to age indicates that the child’s physical development is on track.
• Height-weight ratio in children is an important issue for parents. From time to time, every mother asks “Is my child short?”, “Is my child thin?” We know that you have such thoughts. First of all, let’s say that for your child’s physical development to progress correctly, you need to offer him the right stimuli. In other words, if the child is very weak or overweight, if there is no underlying condition, the problem is related to nutrition. If your child is short, under the same conditions, the problem may be due to conditions such as lack of nutrition and physical activity.
• From the age of 1 to 6 years, the baby will have acquired the most basic physical skills. It has many abilities such as crawling, walking, speaking, running, writing, reading, cutting, holding and using tools.
• Height and weight development in boys and girls is very rapid from birth to 14 years of age. Until this age, they grow an average of 7 cm each year and gain 2 kilograms. However, after the age of 14, the child’s height and weight chart begins to change. After this age, you can see that weight gain and height growth slow down.
• Body mass index differs according to age and gender. Boy height weight development progresses faster than girl kid height weight development.

What should you do if your child is underweight or overweight?

• First of all, you should determine if there is a problem under this situation of your child. Weight fluctuations in children may indicate an endocrine problem, a hormonal problem or conditions such as diabetes may be seen in the child.
• If there is no health problem, what you need to do is to change your child’s diet. Find out the current weight of the child. Compare the weight of your child by examining the height and weight chart for the children we have given above. If your child’s weight is lower or higher than the average values, you can consult a nutritionist and make adjustments.
• Sports and physical activities also help regulate the child’s weight. You can help with weight control by choosing a sport that suits your child’s interests.

What should you do if your child is short or tall?

• Height development in children is related to both genetic characteristics and environmental conditions. The height of the children, whose family is typically tall or short, can be shaped accordingly. However, sometimes short stature in children can be related to environmental factors or endocrine problems. Not being able to eat regularly and adequately may be related to problems such as thyroid and growth hormone deficiency.
• Consuming foods rich in calcium, eating protein sources such as meat, fish and chicken, eating vegetables and fruits can be beneficial for increasing height.

• Apart from these, it may also be beneficial to encourage the child to play sports that increase height, such as basketball.
• Tall stature in children may not usually indicate a serious problem. But the uncontrolled lengthening of the neck may be related to the problem of gigantism. If there is a problem in your child’s height-weight ratio for age, you should definitely consult a pediatric endocrinologist.