Growth chart children (2-19 years)

Would you like to know whether the height and growth of your child is age-appropriate? Get an overview in the growth tables of the World Health Organization (WHO) and compare the size and growth of your child with the standard values ​​(percentiles).

Growth chart for boys (2 to 19 years)

Growth chart for boys

age in yearsHeight in cm at the percentile
3rd P15th P50th P85th P97th P
2.081.483.987.190.392.1
3.089.192.296.199.9103.1
4.095.499.0103.3107.7111.2
5.0101.2105.2110.0114.8118.7
6.0106.7110.8116.0121.1125.2
7.0111.8116.3121.7127.2131.7
8.0116.6121.4127.3133.1137.9
9.0121.3126.3132.6138.8143.9
10.0125.8131.2137.8144.4149.8
11.0130.5136.1143.1150.1155.8
12.0135.8141.7149.1156.4162.4
13.0142.1148.3156.0163.7170.0
14.0148.7155.2163.2171.2177.6
15.0154.3160.9169.0177.0183.6
16.0158.3164.8172.9181.0187.5
17.0160.8167.2175.2183.1189.5
18.0162.2168.4176.1183.9190.0
19.0162.8169.0176.5184.1190.3

How do you read the percentiles?

The curves in our charts are standard curves for children’s growth, called percentiles. If you want to know whether your child’s growth corresponds to normal growth, then you can check whether your child’s growth curve is roughly parallel to the middle curve. This is the median, i.e. the mean value. For example, if a girl’s growth followed exactly this curve, that would mean that 50 percent of girls of the same age would be taller and 50 percent would be shorter or the same height as that girl. Accordingly, in the 97th percentile, only three percent are larger and the rest are smaller or the same size. If your child’s height is in the 3rd percentile, 97 percent of the other girls are taller and only 3 percent are shorter than your child.

growth disorders in children

In most cases, children’s growth levels off at a percentile by the age of two or three, along which growth then continues. Your child’s growth does not have to correspond exactly to the 50th percentile. However, it should not stray too far from the 50th percentile. For example, if it’s below the 3rd percentile or above the 97th percentile, that’s very far from normal. Retarded growth in children can be a symptom of a serious medical condition. But it is also important that the size does not fluctuate too much between the percentiles. If this is the case, it can be an indication of a growth disorder. You should always discuss such abnormalities with your pediatrician.

Incidentally, if the children’s growth is temporarily slower or faster than other children’s, that’s harmless. This can be the case, for example, after a long illness and is completely normal. One only speaks of a growth disorder when the growth of the children is abnormal over a period of at least six months.

What influences children’s growth?

Children’s growth is stimulated by the growth hormone somatropin. This hormone is produced by the pituitary gland and is usually secreted during sleep. It controls both bone growth and muscle building and is therefore mainly responsible for the growth of children. But these factors also have an influence on the height of a child:

growth phases in children

The growth of children can be divided into different phases. However, a child grows the most before it is born in the womb. During these nine months, about a third of the children’s entire growth takes place. After birth, there are three stages in children’s growth:

  • Infancy (< 1 year) : Children’s growth is very strong in the first year of life. On average, children grow between 20 and 25 centimeters during this time.
  • Age 2 to the onset of puberty : Children’s growth slows down further and further during this phase until, around the age of nine, it levels off at around four to five centimeters per year.
  • Puberty : During puberty there is another strong growth spurt, so that children can grow up to twelve centimeters per year. With the end of puberty, the growth of children also stops.

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