Child Growth Monitoring Clinic in Hyderabad
Is your child growing well? Regular growth monitoring is the window into your child's overall health — and early action prevents long-term consequences.
India carries the highest burden of child undernutrition in the world — yet many Indian families do not realise their child is underweight or undernourished because it happens gradually. Conversely, childhood overweight and obesity are rapidly increasing in urban Hyderabad. Growth monitoring — regular weighing, height measurement, and plotting on WHO growth charts — is the simplest and most effective tool for assessing a child's health and detecting problems early.
Key Points
- Growth charts (height, weight, head circumference) are the most important screening tools in paediatrics.
- A child crossing two major percentile lines downward needs evaluation for growth faltering.
- Stunting (low height-for-age) affects 35% of Indian children under 5 — largely preventable with nutrition.
- Growth hormone deficiency is rare but treatable — do not assume a short child just has short parents.
- Head circumference measurement is critical in infants — microcephaly and macrocephaly both need evaluation.
35%
of Indian under-5s are stunted
Source: NFHS-5 2021
>2 lines
percentile crossing triggers evaluation
Source: WHO Growth Standards
Growth Concerns We Address
Underweight and Failure to Thrive
Weight falling below the 3rd percentile or crossing two percentile lines downward on the growth chart. Requires investigation into dietary intake, absorption, chronic illness, or emotional/social causes.
Short Stature
Height significantly below age and gender norms. May indicate nutritional deficiency, hypothyroidism, coeliac disease, growth hormone deficiency, or constitutional short stature (family pattern).
Childhood Overweight and Obesity
BMI above 85th percentile for age is overweight; above 95th percentile is obese. Childhood obesity significantly increases the risk of adult type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and metabolic syndrome.
Nutritional Deficiencies
Iron deficiency anaemia, vitamin D deficiency (extremely common in India), vitamin B12 deficiency, zinc deficiency — all affecting growth, immunity, brain development, and energy.
Picky Eating and Feeding Difficulties
Toddler food refusal, extreme pickiness, sensory aversion to textures, or anxiety around food — addressed with practical feeding strategies rather than force-feeding.
Growth Monitoring and Nutrition Programme
WHO Growth Chart Plotting
Weight, height, head circumference, and BMI plotted on WHO 2006 growth standards at every visit. We track trajectory over time — a single measurement is less informative than the trend.
Dietary Assessment
A structured 24-hour dietary recall and food frequency questionnaire identifies gaps in calories, protein, iron, calcium, and micronutrients — and guides specific dietary advice.
Targeted Blood Tests
Full blood count, serum ferritin, vitamin D, vitamin B12, thyroid function, and coeliac serology when indicated by the clinical picture.
Nutritional Supplements
Iron, vitamin D, zinc, and multivitamins prescribed at evidence-based doses where deficiency is identified. We avoid polypharmacy — only supplements with a clear indication are prescribed.
Practical Dietary Counselling
Indian diet-based practical guidance — calorie-dense foods for underweight children, appropriate protein sources, iron absorption optimisation, and meal frequency strategies for picky eaters.
Why Choose Sri Anand Hospital?
Treated by: Dr. Sushma B · MD (Paediatrics) · Child Nutrition and Growth Specialist
"Growth monitoring is one of the simplest yet most powerful tools in paediatrics. A child who falls off their growth curve is telling us something important — nutritional, hormonal, or systemic. We often catch conditions before they become serious, simply by plotting a point on a chart."
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sri Anand Child & Neuro Hospital · Open 24/7 · Chanda Nagar, Hyderabad