Importance of Growth Monitoring and Assessment in Early Childhood

Childhood undernutrition remains a major public health issue in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), making growth monitoring and assessment crucial for early identification, management, and prevention of growth faltering among children. This method involves regular recording of weight and height or length using the WHO growth charts to assess the nutritional status and compare with the standard population-based growth curves, is recognized as one of the most cost-effective strategies to monitor the nutritional status of a child. Regular growth monitoring offers numerous benefits including tracking child development, early identification and addressing malnutrition, enhancing caregiver’s nutritional knowledge, and reducing morbidity and mortality associated with malnutrition. However, challenges in LMICs include limited resources leading to sub-optimal coverage, shortage of skilled health workers, and lack of integration between growth monitoring and other nutritional services. There is an ongoing debate about the use of WHO growth standards considered to be aspirational versus regional growth metrics that better align with local growth trends. Despite these challenges, effective growth monitoring and assessment are essential interventions for addressing child undernutrition and are vital for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) [2‒4, 17]. Many countries have successfully incorporated growth monitoring into their public health policies to promote child nutrition and overall health outcomes.