BMI - An Important Tool in Monitoring Your Child's Growth and Development
In the past, doctors have relied on height and weight, taken during annual well-visits, to compare a child's physical growth to other children of the same age. However, in recent years, doctors have started to use another tool to conduct this comparison - Body Mass Index (BMI).
What Is BMI?
Body Mass Index is a calculation that uses a child's height and weight to estimate their body fat. Doctors use BMI to determine how appropriate a child's weight is in relation to a specific height and age.
Why is it important to know your child's BMI?
Knowing your child's BMI is very helpful because it will identify children and teens at risk for becoming overweight. Children at risk can then be monitored by their doctor and steps can be taken early on to prevent adult obesity.
How can I calculate my child's BMI?
The best way to determine your child's BMI is to have your child's doctor calculate it. That way, you will know the calculation is accurate and you can discuss the results. If your child is between 2 and 19 years old, you can also calculate your child's BMI yourself by going to the following Web site.
Body Mass Index Calculator
How do I read my child's results?
Your child's BMI will be reported as a percentile. The percentile shows how your child compares to children who are the same gender and age. To illustrate, if your results show your child's BMI is in the 70th percentile, this means that 70% of children of the same gender and age have a lower BMI.
Keep in mind that BMI is not perfect. For example, it's very common for children to gain weight quickly - and see the BMI go up - during puberty. BMI is simply an important tool that can be used to track and help make sure your child is growing and developing in a healthy way.
To learn more about BMI, speak with your doctor and visit the following web sites:
Center for Disease Control and Prevention: www.cdc.gov
AAP: American Academy of Pediatrics: www.aap.org. You can request a free DVD on weight management for children at this Web site.
