Child Growth Assessment Tool | Weight and Height Growth Checker

👶 What does this tool do?

This tool uses your child's age, sex, weight and length or height to assess growth using WHO Child Growth Standards for children from birth to 5 years.

It calculates four growth indicators:

Weight-for-age — is weight appropriate for age?
Length/Height-for-age — is height appropriate for age?
BMI-for-age — body mass index compared to age norms
Weight-for-length/height — is weight appropriate for height?

Results are shown as z-scores (SD bands) and colour-coded as Expected, Low, Very low, High or Very high. This is an educational tool — it does not diagnose any condition.

Prematurity

Child Details

Measurements

Results

Step 1 — Prematurity Check

This helps determine whether corrected age should be used for growth interpretation.

Was the child born before 37 completed weeks of pregnancy?

No — born at or after 37 weeks Yes — born before 37 weeks (premature) Not sure

Step 2 — Child Details

Enter the child's date of birth, the date of measurement, and the child's sex.

Child's date of birth

Date of measurement

The date the weight and height were measured. Defaults to today.

Sex

🧒 Boy 👧 Girl

Step 3 — Measurements

Enter the child's weight and length or height from a recent clinic visit, hospital or CHDR record.

Measurement method

Weight

Enter weight in kilograms. Use the most recent weight from a clinic, hospital or CHDR. Example: if the record says 8.4 kg, enter 8.4.

Practical range: 1 – 40 kg

Length / Height

Enter in centimeters.

Practical range: 30 – 130 cm

Step 4 — Growth Assessment Result

Understanding Your Child's Growth

Growth assessment compares your child's measurements to international reference standards. This section explains what the results mean.

What are WHO Child Growth Standards?

WHO Child Growth Standards describe how children should grow under optimal conditions — good nutrition, no disease, and a healthy environment. They were developed from the WHO Multicentre Growth Reference Study (2006), which followed nearly 8,500 healthy children across six countries. In Sri Lanka, these standards are used in the Child Health Development Record (CHDR) and at Infant Welfare Clinics.

What does the z-score mean?

A z-score (also called an SD score) tells you how many standard deviations your child's measurement is above or below the median for children of the same age and sex. A z-score of 0 means exactly at the median; -1 means one SD below the median.

Z-score	Result band	Colour
Below -3 SD	Very low	Red
-3 SD to below -2 SD	Low	Orange
-2 SD to +2 SD	Expected range	Green
Above +2 SD to +3 SD	High	Orange
Above +3 SD	Very high	Red

What do the four indicators mean?

Weight-for-age: Shows whether the child's weight is appropriate for their age. Low values may suggest underweight. High values alone do not diagnose obesity — consider weight-for-height and BMI-for-age together.

Length/Height-for-age: Shows whether the child's height is appropriate for their age. Low values over time may suggest stunting — a marker of long-term growth restriction, often related to chronic nutrition or health problems.

BMI-for-age: Body mass index compared to age-specific norms. High BMI-for-age may suggest excess weight for height. BMI naturally falls after infancy and rises again at the adiposity rebound around 4–6 years.

Weight-for-length/height: Shows whether the child's weight is appropriate for their height. Low values may suggest wasting or thinness — often a sign of recent acute undernutrition. High values may suggest excess weight for height.

What is corrected age?

Premature babies are expected to grow differently from term babies in the early years. Corrected age adjusts for this: it subtracts the number of weeks premature from the chronological age. For example, a 6-month-old born 8 weeks early has a corrected age of about 4 months. WHO recommends using corrected age for growth interpretation in premature children, especially during the first 2 years of life.

Limitations of this tool

This tool assesses growth using a single measurement — which is a snapshot, not a trend. A single low or high measurement does not diagnose a condition. Children with chronic illnesses, genetic conditions or long-term feeding problems need specialised growth assessment. This tool uses WHO LMS Method (WHO 2006) with linear interpolation and is for educational guidance only.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about child growth assessment, answered by Sineth Hospitals.

What are WHO Child Growth Standards? ▼

WHO Child Growth Standards describe how children should grow under optimal conditions. They were developed from the WHO Multicentre Growth Reference Study (2006), which followed healthy children in six countries. The standards use z-scores to show where a child's measurement falls compared to the reference population. In Sri Lanka, these standards are used in the CHDR and at Infant Welfare Clinics.

What does a z-score mean in child growth? ▼

A z-score (also called SD score) tells you how many standard deviations a child's measurement is from the median for children of the same age and sex. A z-score between -2 and +2 is within the expected range. Below -2 SD is considered low, and below -3 SD is very low. Above +2 SD is high, and above +3 SD is very high.

What should I do if my child's result is in the low range? ▼

A low result from this tool does not diagnose a disease. However, it suggests that a healthcare worker should review the child's growth, especially if the child is not feeding well, is losing weight, or has had repeated infections. Bring this result to your child's next clinic visit or CHDR review. A very low result warrants an earlier review.

How often should a child's growth be checked? ▼

Regular growth monitoring is important throughout early childhood. In Sri Lanka, growth is tracked in the Child Health Development Record (CHDR). Children should be weighed and measured at every Infant Welfare Clinic visit and at recommended intervals throughout the first five years of life. A single measurement is less informative than a trend over time.

Is a single measurement enough to assess growth? ▼

No. A single measurement is a snapshot. Growth is better assessed by tracking measurements over time — looking at the trend. A single measurement that is low may reflect a normal pattern for that child if previous measurements showed the same trend. Repeated measurements at clinic visits give a much more reliable picture of a child's growth pattern.