Growth rate of children of a cohort up to the sixth month of life

Abstract

The scope of this article is to investigate factors that contributed to the growth rate of children from birth through the sixth month of life. It involves a cohort study with 144 children observed at birth and in the first, second and sixth months of life. Child head circumference (cm/month), weight (g/day) and length (cm/month) rates were compared according to birth, pregnancy, maternal and family characteristics and those related to the food, illness and health care of the child. The female sex and difficulty in breastfeeding contributed to the deceleration of all three growth rates, while maternal non-vaccination against tetanus affected the increase of head circumference and of child length. Severe maternal mental disorder, moderate/severe food insecurity, oatmeal consumption and failure to follow-up the development of the child influenced the head circumference and weight rates. The intake of alcohol during pregnancy, cesarean delivery, mixed/predominant breastfeeding, use of infant formula and episodes of diarrhea/vomiting affected the head circumference, while inadequate prenatal care affected weight, and low-stature mothers and pacifier use affected length. Modifiable factors are highlighted, such as the consumption of oatmeal and infant formula, and the use of pacifiers, which are related to breastfeeding in infants.

Key words:
Growth; Breastfeeding; Infant