What is the normal weight of a child at birth?

The weight of the newly born baby is the main indicator of his health in general. That is why the doctors pay special attention to this factor, fixing it one of the first in the newborn's medical book. And the question of what weight is normal for the birth of a child is not accidentally so much interested in young mothers. In addition, the parturient should also know what this indicator depends on, what can threaten the shortage or excess weight and how in the future to avoid problems with the weight of the baby. Many also ask themselves: what is the normal weight of a child at birth, depending on the sex of the baby? The answers to all these questions you can find here.

All you need to know about the weight of a newborn

The normal weight of a child at birth varies between 2.5-4.5 kg. It should be borne in mind that newborn boys usually have a slightly larger body weight. So, the normal weight of a child at the birth of a girl can be a maximum of 4 kg. If the body weight is less than 2.5 kilograms, then in this case the baby fixes its deficiency. Hence, difficulties may arise with the care of the child, perhaps even special nutrition and appropriate conditions for weight normalization will be required. Such babies are not considered premature, but their stay in the hospital can nevertheless take a little longer. Now young mothers most often give birth to children with a normal weight and even exceeding the norm. But kids who have shortages in the mass, usually catch up with their peers in this regard by six months.

What determines the weight of a child after birth?

The weight of the newborn is affected by many factors. The reasons why children are born with too much body weight, can be as follows:

• Heredity. Thus, parents who are overweight are more likely to have large, complex children. Slim parents have the opposite situation.
• Second, third and subsequent delivery.
• Delay in childbirth (prolonged term).
• Incorrect nutrition, consumption of too high-calorie and heavy food during pregnancy.
• Diabetes mellitus (acquired and hereditary).
• Different Rh factor. If the mother is Rh positive, and the baby is negative, then there may be a rhesus conflict, which often leads to weight gain in the baby in the womb.

Deficient body weight in toddlers: causes

• Fruit two, three or more fruits at a time.
• Diseases of the cardiovascular and urinary systems (including infectious ones), chronic lung diseases in the parturient woman.
• Diseases of the uterus, defects in the placenta, poor blood coagulation in the mother.
• Poor nutrition of the future mother during pregnancy, unfavorable climate and ecology.
• Smoking and the use of alcohol in quantity exceeding the permissible norms (in most cases alcoholic drinks should be completely excluded).
• Consumption of caffeine in large doses.

Nutrition and its impact on the weight of the newborn in the early days

The normal weight of a child at birth in the first 24 hours of his life can decrease by about 150-200 grams. This figure is appropriate if the baby appeared with a weight of 2.5-4.5 kg. This is the normal weight of the baby at birth. It is considered permissible and absolutely natural to reduce it by a maximum of 300 grams. This is due to the fact that the newborn gradually develops swelling, and the intestine is relieved of what has accumulated in it. After birth, the baby has not yet set the diet, and this also has an effect on body weight.

Normalization of the weight of the baby is already on the fifth day. On the tenth day, the body weight begins to increase regularly, depending on nutrition. Young mothers who are breastfeeding should not panic if the child heals too slowly. The fact is that on artificial feeding babies gain weight many times faster than on the mother. This is explained by the availability in the purchased mixtures of various nutrients and components that allow the newborn to develop more quickly.

The normal weight of a child at birth in our time is not uncommon, but modern medical centers allow nursing newborns with a body weight of only one kilogram. Such babies are born with weakened immunity, they are completely inactive and sluggish, therefore in the first days of life they need more attention and care. As the statistics show, in a year thanks to the help of doctors the kids become stronger, their weight is normalized, and in their development they do not lag behind their peers.

Excess and lack of body weight: danger

Insufficient body weight of the fetus, however, like its excess, can be observed even in the womb. If the deficit of weight is diagnosed in late pregnancy, then a young mother is assigned a special diet rich in the necessary vitamins and minerals. The caloric intake is also determined by the attending physician.

If the fetus is overweight, it is also not a good indicator and is considered a deviation. Doctors treat this with caution, since the overweight of the baby can indicate violations in its development, and in most cases give birth to some recommendations. Most often, she is given a balanced diet, which is dominated by low-fat dairy products, vegetables and fruits. Fatty delicacies, sweet pastries and other flour products should be completely excluded from the menu, on smoked foods and too high-calorie dishes are also taboo.

In addition to malnutrition, often overweight in the baby at birth can indicate the presence of maternal diseases of the endocrine system.

Than the excess weight of the baby is dangerous for the health of the future mother

An important point: overweight baby can harm not only the newborn, but also his mother. Before birth, this can threaten the occurrence of complications in women already during childbirth. The most frequent of them is a rupture of the perineum. In order to avoid such traumas, the women in labor are assigned to do cesarean section. After birth, such a baby may require increased attention. During the first year, parents should constantly monitor the development of their child. By the way, the normal weight and height of the child at birth in part ensure that his state of health at that time will be positive. In addition, with excess or deficient body weight, babies can develop completely different complications.

What is dangerous is the underweight of a newborn

Imagine that the child was born, and consider the problem of weight normalization in the process of the baby's life. In children born with low weight, there is a violation of thermoregulation. As a result, kids quickly freeze, and they need much more time to warm up and restore the temperature balance. Such children are more susceptible to various diseases and colds, since in most cases they have lowered immunity. Hypovitaminosis and anemia are another frequent companion to children with insufficient body weight.

What can lead to an overweight of the newborn

It was always thought that the more weight of a born child, the more healthy it will be. Especially often they say this about boys - they say, a real hero will grow! This assumption is fundamentally wrong, because the normal weight of a child at birth of a boy should be up to 5 kg. Perhaps in the first years of life a baby born with a larger mass will be less likely to get sick than his peers. However, in the future he may have serious problems. These include allergies, a backlog in physical development (since the child will have difficulty managing his body), as well as a lack of understanding from friends (which may subsequently lead to the development of mental disorders).

Regular weight control is the key to proper development

The normal weight of a child at birth is, of course, excellent, but later the parents can, without even noticing, fatten the baby (or vice versa). Avoiding problems in this regard is not only possible, but even necessary at the initial stage of child growth. First of all, it is necessary to carefully develop the diet, negotiating and specifying all the nuances with a specialist. In the future, you need to constantly monitor the growth and weight of the baby.

However, there is one "but": if the child's health is stable even if there is excess weight (within acceptable limits), then parents should not worry about it. The main thing is that the child feels well and at this weight it is comfortable. In this case, young parents can simply consider their child to be moderately well-fed and not take any action on the way to weight loss.