Newborn's Weight

Sizing Up the New Arrival

A newborn’s weight cannot be used to predict a child’s future size.

Ask any parent what she or he remembers from the birth of a first child and one of the first details likely to be recalled is the baby’s birth weight and height. What is to be made of these vital statistics that are so proudly reported? 80% of all infants born in the United States fall between 5 pounds 11 1/2 ounces and 8 pounds 5 3/4 ounces at birth. About 1 in 10 newborns weighs in above the range; an equivalent number is below the low end of this zone.

Where your child is on this continuum may depend on a number of factors. For instance, the longer a pregnancy goes on, the larger the infant is likely to be, while an unborn baby’s growth may be limited by poor nutrition or other complications during pregnancy. Smoking, drinking, or drug use by the mother during pregnancy can also stunt development.

Heredity also plays a part, though it’s no guarantee of how large an infant will grow up to be. While babies whose parents are unusually large or small may reflect their parents’ size at birth, an infant’s birth size should not be taken as a predictor of a child’s eventual size, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Babies whose birth size is larger or smaller than average may find life beyond the womb difficult at first. Large babies sometimes experience trouble with their blood-sugar levels and need extra feedings to avoid hypoglycemia. Small babies may find feeding difficult or have trouble maintaining proper body temperature.

A newborn’s birth size can be a tip-off to doctors and nurses that a baby will require special attention for a few days. But more often than not, these stats will be used mainly as benchmarks by parents and pediatricians in following an infant’s advance through childhood.

God`s Garden. The Kiss of the Sun for Pardon. The song of the birds for Mirth. One is nearer to God in a Garden than anywhere else on Earth (Dorothy Frances Gurney, dedicated to the Glory of God by friends of the St. James Park). Photo by Elena

Rating a Newborn’s Health

Within a minute of delivering a baby, the obstetrics team will check the newborn’s heart rate, respiration, muscle tone, reflexes, and coloration and record a score designed to reflect how that baby came through the delivery process. That rating, known as an Apgar score, is compiled by issuing a ranking between zero and two for each of the vital signs and indicators listed above, and then adding each of the numbers together to arrive at a single score. The process is then repeated five minutes after birth and the two sets of observations are compared to gauge the baby’s progress in adjusting to his or her new environment. But Apgar scores are not intended as a reliable predictor of a baby’s long-term health prospects, only of how the newborn is adapting to life outside a mother’s womb.

Component and Apgar Score

    Heart Rate Absent – Slow (less than 100 beats/minute) – More that 100 beats/min.

    Respiration – Absent – Weak; hypoventilation – Good, Strong cry.

    Muscle Tone – Limp – Some Flexion – Active Motion.

    Reflex Irritability – No response – Grimace – Cough or sneeze.

    Color – Blue or Pale – Body Pink; extremities blue – Complete pink.