Stressed: 3 year old 9th centile for height… should I be worried?

[Emflou]

Hello,

I really need some reassurance. I’ve got myself in quite a panic about my 3 year old. I suddenly noticed how short he was compared to a friend and when I measured him realised he’s only in the 9th centile (and only just above/on the line). Should I be concerned?

I have done too much googling and now and over thinking everything. I’m 5ft 9 and his Dad is just under 6ft, so I really feel he should be taller? His older brother is consistently in the 50th.

Any stories or anything that could put my mind at rest would be really lovely. Thank you!

He's on a centile...meaning he's within the expected height range for children his age. You're working yourself up over nothing OP honestly.

My daughter is 8 and is still an entire head shorter than her friends. She perfectly healthy and fine though. I wouldn’t worry unless there are any health issues you’re worried about?

This means that out of 100 children at the same age 91 are taller. Why does it matter if your child is shorter? I ask this as a very happy 5ft 1 adult!

My son has always been on the 0.4 centile. Started school in 2-3 uniform. He’s healthy. It’s just the way he is built. Some of the other shorter kids in his class have had growth spurts and now are average size (or taller) others stay at a similar height to him. Keep an eye on your DS’s height and as long as he’s growing - (even if it’s not as tall as his peers)- that’s the thing you need to be looking at.

Thank you for your reassurance. He seems perfectly healthy I just worried that as we are quite tall that he should be higher on the centiles and so maybe there was something medically wrong that I didn’t know about. I’m probably thinking far too much into it though! I guess they all grow at different rates? I’m very good at over thinking these kind of things 😂

What weight centile is he on and has he always been on the 9th for height? Both of those are important before we assume it's just 'how he is'.

My DS is 9th for height and weight. Born on the 25th for both but been on the 9th since a few months old (now 10 years). Very healthy, clearly that's where he is supposed to be.

I’m not sure about weight, I will weigh him at some point soon, but he’s certainly not skinny.

when measured at 10 months he was on the borderline for 25th/50th centile for height, then at 1 and a half 9th and has continued on the 9th since then. He’s nearly 4 now

2 of my children have genetic conditions that affect their growth and they are on treatment for this. There are quite a few conditions, most people haven’t heard of any of them. The one my children have was only discovered in the 1990s. The best thing to do is make a GP appointment and they can investigate or refer further. In the meantime track your child’s growth using the red book. Generally speaking children normally reach or follow the curve towards a mid-parental height so it is unusual for your son to be way off. The Dr will track the speed of growth and look for movements between percentiles.

I think you are justified for having a concern. I have a similar issue with my DD. Despite my husband and I, and our other child being tall, my daughter is sitting between 2nd and 4th centiles.
I was advised this should be investigated (and is in the ongoing process of being done).
It is not OK to just say a child is within the normal centile range. Mid parental height is also used to predict whether a child is on the correct centile. It sounds a little off that you are both
Tall and have a smaller child. My dd was on a low Weight centile too. (Proportionate to height though). My gp measured my daughter when I raised concers and referred to me a endocrinologist. She has been seen by a dietitian, cardiologist and a gastroenterologist too. All the doctors have said her height is a potential concern due to bring small with tall parents. And certainly triggers the need for investigstions. In my case it revealed my daughter had underlying coeliac disease so. Definitely ask a go for reassurance. It doesnt mean there is a problem but it's sensible to check.

Do kids not get regular height/weight measurements any more? My youngest is 14 so it's been a while - I remember height and weight being tracked in the red book? As long as height and weight are on a similar centile I think you're ok op?

Thank you. That’s interesting. My husband has recently been diagnosed as coeliac but my son’s blood tests have come back negative. Any idea if this result could be incorrect?

As a general indicator, most people are half their adult height at age 2. So look up how tall he was then, and then double it, and see if that lines up with how tall you and his dad are.

For example, DD is a 0.4th centile kid and has been since 3m, she's tiny in comparison with her peers. At 2, she was exactly 2ft 6, meaning she should end up around 5ft. Both her dad and I are 5ft 4 so she'll be a little on the small side but not shockingly so. Both her grandmothers are 4ft 11. I'm very tall for a woman in my family!