It is to make parents aware of the need to regularly monitor the growth of their children, both girls and boys, that the French Society of Pediatrics, with Novo Nordisk and the GRANDIR association, are launching a campaign entitled “a challenge of size”.
Why should children’s growth be monitored?
Growth is an important indicator of the state of health and well-being in children. Also, it is essential to be able to spot the first signs of a growth disorder and to have the reflex to consult a specialist without delay in order to carry out an assessment.
And for good reason: regular monitoring of height and weight growth parameters is essential for detecting and establishing an early diagnosis of a growth disorder. “Ideally, it is necessary that measure the child every 3 months until 1 year, then every 6 months until 4 years and finally 1 to 2 times a year until the puberty, specify the Pr Agnès Linglart (Bicêtre Hospital). These measurements must be reported on the growth curves in order to verify that its size is well within the “corridor” of the reference curve and that it follows a regular progression”.
In case of growth retardation, the child’s height is below the lower limit of the reference curve. This may be indicative of a possible pathology, such as celiac disease, chronic inflammatory disease, chronic systemic disease, or hypothyroidism.
A major challenge, including for girls!
With its slogan “To monitor the growth of children, there is still time!”, this campaign aims to make parents understand that regular monitoring of children’s growth is a real issue.
What’s more, she points out the importance of supervising girls and boys with the same attention. “Many girls are delayed in being diagnosed with their growth sickness because parents are less concerned about their short stature,” supports Béatrice Demaret, President of the Association Grandir.
The campaign revolves around several actions with in particular a preventive film and a website intended for parents to follow the growth of their children. They can record and download growth charts and even calculate the target height of their children through a growth simulator.
Source: Press release Novo Nordisk, Association Grandir, SFP, February 2021.
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