Your Baby's Growth Chart

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By Suzanne Dixon M.D., M.P.H.

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"There is nothing so amazing as the development of a child," says Suzanne Dixon, M.D., a behavioral and developmental pediatrician who was one of the founding members of the Pampers Parenting Network. "Every day is a new adventure when you have a child around you. I never get tired of learning from the children who have been a part of my life, professionally and personally."Suzanne Dixon, M.D., M.P.H., was born and raised in Minnesota and graduated from the University of Minnesota, School of Medicine. She did her pediatric training at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and then completed a fellowship in Child Development at Boston's Children's Hospital. Dr. Dixon joined the faculty at the University of California, San Diego, and did patient care, teaching, and research for 20 years. She ran a large newborn service, performed research in early child development, and was involved in many community outreach activities in maternal child health. Throughout her entire professional life she has maintained an interest in cross-cultural activities, living and working in many parts of the world, including Mexico, India, Kenya, Indonesia, and several countries from the former U.S.S.R. Dr. Dixon is the author of numerous research articles, review articles, and textbook chapters in pediatrics, child and family development, and public health. Her textbook, written with Dr. Martin Stein, Encounters With Children: Pediatric Behavior and Development, has become a classic in child health education and is in its fourth edition. She is Editor in Chief of the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, an international journal of high standing in the professional world. She also has served as an associate editor for Infant Mental Health and currently reviews for several major pediatric journals. Dr. Dixon is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and served in national positions in that organization. She is a member of the Society for Pediatric Research, the Society for Research in Child Development, the American Public Health Association, and the Executive Council of the Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. She serves as consultant to several national and international organizations and has received an award from Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies.Dr. Dixon continues to lecture and consult worldwide on aspects of maternal, child, and family health. She practices behavioral and developmental pediatrics in Montana and works with local advocacy groups on education and women''s health. Dr. Dixon has been married for over 30 years and has three sons. She and her husband travel frequently, are outdoor enthusiasts, and enjoy being amateur anthropologists.

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The centerpiece of your child's health record is his growth chart. Children who are growing at the expected rate and whose height or length and weight are pretty well matched are generally healthy. Your health care provider will track your baby's height and weight on a percentile chart such as the ones below. Over time, your provider will be able to see whether your baby is growing at the expected rate. This chart will help you follow your child's growth along with the health care provider.

As your provider will tell you, healthy children come in lots of different sizes and the band of what's considered "normal" growth is very wide. Many children, for example, shift their place on the growth chart at about 6 months as they start to reflect the build they've inherited from their family. Earlier, their growth reflected how they grew before birth and their nutrition in the first months. Breastfed babies are fatter in the first few months and relatively thinner later on in the first year than children fed exclusively with formula. And some families have fast-growing babies, while others have slow and steady gainers. So keep these individual differences in mind as you follow your child's growth.

The charts below show the average growth patterns of boys and girls. There is a wide range of what's normal. Use these charts to track your own baby's growth and bring any questions or concerns to your child's health care provider.

Click below to select a chart for your baby.

Weight for age - Boys, birth to 36 months

Weight for age - Girls, birth to 36 months

Length for age - Boys, birth to 36 months

Length for age - Girls, birth to 36 months

Weight for age - Boys, age 2 to 6

Weight for age - Girls, age 2 to 6

Height for age - Boys, age 2 to 6

Height for age - Girls, age 2 to 6