The ideal weight of a toddler for ages 2

Toddler weight are two important things that need to be considered at the stage of a child's development. Parents can take their children to the Posyandu or Puskesmas every month to find out the exact figure for the child's weight. What is the child's development like in terms of the weight of the child under five? The following is the full explanation.

The ideal body weight for toddlers aged 1-5 years

Monitoring body weight growth is also important in order to help your little one pursue his ideal growth. This is to anticipate any time the child's growth is experiencing a slowdown or acceleration.

As a parent, you can help your toddler's weight grow to be ideal by providing things that support him.

Ideal body weight for toddlers aged 1-5 years

Even though your little one's weight is almost the same as other children, their physical growth may not be the same as other children their age.

This proves that every child does not necessarily have slower or faster growth. For that, you need to know what the ideal toddler weight is.

Here are the details according to age:

Children under the age of 1-2 years

The weight gain of a toddler aged 1-2 years is not as big as when he was born until the age of 1 year. Quoting from Healthy Children, the average body weight increases 1.4 kg - 2.3 kg a year.

For women, the ideal body weight is around 8.9 kilograms - 11.5 kilograms. Meanwhile, men are around 9.6 kilograms - 12.2 kilograms.

Children under the age of 2-3 years

Just like the previous year, the weight growth of children aged 2-3 years is not too big but is still considered ideal. So, parents need to know the proper nutritional needs of children.

For boys, the ideal body weight is around 12.2 kilograms - 14.3 kilograms. Meanwhile, for girls it is 11.5 kilograms - 13.9 kilograms.

Toddler 3-4 years

In the development of children aged 3 to 4 years, weight gain is not much different from the previous age. Ideally, children under five at this age gain about 1.5 kilograms in weight a year.

Toddler 4-5 years

At the age of 4-5 years, children's movements are getting more agile because they really like physical activity. The ideal toddler weight at the age of 4-5 years increases about 2 kilograms in a year.

The following is a breakdown of the ideal toddler weight for children aged 1-5 years, based on the Regulation of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia.

If the toddler's weight is less than this range, this is a sign that is less than ideal.

Meanwhile, the weight of the toddler who is more than this range indicates that the condition is not ideal because the child is overweight or obese in the child.

If weight loss occurs continuously, it could be a sign that the child's growth is having problems or the child's health condition is being disturbed.

Factors that make it difficult for toddlers to gain weight

Some of the reasons that may be a problem eating in children include:

• The habit of being picky about food or picky eater
• Stress (can be due to a different and uncomfortable atmosphere)
• Eating disorders related to sensory abilities in children.

Quoting from the Kids Health page, the ideal child's physical condition is influenced by genetics, including under-five's weight.

If your parents or relatives in your family have a full or fat body, chances are your little one can also experience it.

Vice versa, if your family's children have genetically small stature, your child's weight will not be as large as other friends.

Even though your child is fatter or thinner than his peers, this condition is still considered healthy when looking at genetic factors. Usually, when you enter puberty, the child's weight and height will follow according to age.

How to increase the weight of children under five

Seeing that your little one's weight is still less than the normal weight chart often makes parents worry. There are several ways to increase a child's weight so that it is on a normal chart, namely:

Provide a high calorie diet

If your little one has difficulty eating and you want to gain weight, the way to do this is to choose foods or snacks that are high in calories.

It's important to have a high-calorie diet to gain weight for a toddler, but that doesn't mean giving him candy, chips, or cookies.

For example, you can give him spaghetti carbonara which is rich in fat or make mac and cheese . In addition, provide additional fats such as butter in a slice of bread, and grated cheese to increase your little one's body weight.

For snacks, can provide foods that are high in calories such as avocado, banana, honey, and toddler instant food.

Focus on the quality of the meal not the quantity

When a child is a baby, parents focus on the amount of food that the little one consumes. How much the child feeds, how many liters of milk does the child drink.

However, when the child is getting older and reaches the age of a toddler, you have to change these habits. Parents need to pay attention to the quality of the child's food so that the child's weight increases according to the child's nutrition.

This is the right time to feed children good quality, not just large quantities. However, that does not mean that you immediately stop the various snacks that your little one is eating.

Stephanie Walsh MD, Medical Director of Children's Health at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta reminds us to pause for any food given to your little one.

Give additional vitamins

Some appetite enhancing vitamins need to be given to support the weight gain of toddlers so that they are ideal, namely vitamins A, C, D, and iron. Especially for iron, it is quite important for the body to absorb it because it can increase the child's appetite.

However, be careful when giving children iron supplements. The reason is, there is a condition that the child has excess iron and causes the body's problems to absorb other minerals.

Excess iron also triggers constipation and adds to new problems. Always consult a doctor for giving vitamins to children.

Serve the right amount of food

How do you know it's the right amount? Reporting from the Family Doctor, parents can give one tablespoon of each food according to age. For children aged 3 years, serve as much as 3 tablespoons of food for adults at each meal.

Smaller portions give children the opportunity to add food and can increase the child's weight and become more ideal.

Let the child eat alone

Starting from the age of 1 year, the child begins to try to eat on his own and is involved in food preparation. During toddlers aged 1-5 years, you can invite your little one to prepare a spoon, pour food into a bowl, and feed yourself.

In addition, avoid forcing the child to eat because it only makes him traumatized and, at worst, the child will go on a hunger strike.

Create a pleasant atmosphere when it's time to eat so that your little one is more comfortable eating food and your toddler's body weight can reach the ideal figure.

Reduce high expectations

Toddler weight will not increase rapidly when you do some of the things above, such as the ideal conditions imagined.

Avoid high expectations of something so that you don't feel pressured in undergoing a program to increase your little one's weight.

In some cases, the condition of underfives' weight which falls and is far from ideal can occur for various reasons. For example, too many calories are burned or are a sign of certain medical conditions.

It is very important to discuss with the doctor about this issue, especially if the child has a good appetite but is losing weight or if the child has digestive problems.

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