The World Health Organization is
to issue new guidelines on measuring the growth
rates of babies.
Current charts are based on calculations
using the growth patterns of babies fed largely
on formula milk from 20 years ago.
But bottle-fed babies put on weight
more quickly than those that are breast-fed, meaning
breast-fed children could be shown as underweight.
The new recommended charts are
based on data from breast-fed babies.
The research involved more than
8,000 children from six different countries, who
were raised in environments where breast feeding,
good diets, and prevention and control of infection
were prevalent.
The data from this research has
been used to formulate new charts that indicate
how children should grow; allowing health professionals
and parents to recognize optimal weight gain in
children.
Inaccurate indicator
The study has shown that the current
system pitches target weights too high.
Current charts suggest a healthy
one-year-old weighs between 22.5lb (10.2kg) and
28.5lb (12.93kg), when in fact the true healthy
weight is 21lb (9.53kg) to 26lb (11.79kg).
There has already been pressure
to switch to charts based on breast-fed babies.
The WHO already recommends that
mothers breast-feed their children, stating that
it provides all of the nutrients a child needs.
"The composition of breast milk
is specifically designed for humans," said Dr Toni
Steer, a nutritionist from the Medical Research
Council.
"It also contains a lot of compounds
that help to protect against childhood infections."
Studies have also linked breast
milk to a lower risk of obesity later in life and
lower blood pressure, although research is ongoing.
But babies fed on breast milk put
on weight more slowly than formula fed babies.
Professor Alan Lucas, a child nutrition
expert at the Institute of Child Health, University
College London, said: "The growth of breast fed
babies is more ideal than the growth of babies fed
on formula - it is better for babies to grow more
slowly.
"In the past everybody thought
it was best to have big bonny babies, but interestingly,
just about ever other animal species shows disadvantages
in terms of long-term health if the infants grow
too fast."
His research has shown that babies
who grow quickly show signs of higher blood pressure,
diabetes, obesity and higher cholesterol levels
in later life.
He welcomed the new guidelines:
"This is very recent information and clearly we
need to act upon it in the future."
Rosie Dodds, Policy Research Officer
at the National Childbirth Trust (NCT), said: "These
new growth standards should help ensure more babies
benefit from breastmilk for longer and we look forward
to their implementation across the UK as soon as
possible."
The Department of Health has said
it will consider the WHO's new recommendations before
deciding if UK charts need to be reviewed.
