Every child’s ability to grow requires a safe and healthy environment, where parents can give the best nourishment to support their growth. When their growth and nutrition are on the right track, they can have a childhood that’s filled with happiness and free from troubling health risks.
Fortunately, moms now have access to the right tools to make sure that their kids are growing well. One of them is the PediaSure Plus Growth Calculator, a comprehensive digital tool that helps calculate the ideal height and weight of children according to their age and gender based on World Health Organization (WHO) standards. This is a quick and easy method to monitor children’s growth to ensure that they are reaching their optimal growth and development. If they aren’t, it helps moms plan their course of action.
Dr. Jose Rodolfo Dimaano Jr., Regional Medical Director for Abbott Asia Pacific, says that the Growth Calculator can give a good overview of their children’s growth progress. He adds that it’s also important to check with a pediatrician or nutritionist to know the proper intervention to help their child get back on track.
“Doctors can assess if a child has underlying conditions that predispose the child to stunting, if they are delayed in growth, or if they lack nutrition. Parents can address this by giving their children complete and balanced foods to help fill in the nutritional gaps and sustain their growth and development,” Dr. Dimaano says.
He cites the importance of feeding children based on the Food and Nutrition Research Institute’s (FNRI) “Pinggang Pinoy,” which categorizes Go, Grow, and Glow foods needed for balanced nutrition. If children are picky eaters, give them oral nutritional supplements (ONS) like PediaSure Plus, which is complete and balanced with the right growth nutrients, such as Vitamin K2 and Arginine.
Positive effects of supporting children’s growth
Beyond eating the right food and drinking PediaSure Plus, it’s just as important to provide a nurturing environment for kids to grow up in. Celebrity mom Chesca Kramer knows this all too well as she practices intentional parenting with all her kids, especially her youngest son Gavin. “We make sure that they get the love, nurture, affection, and support they need. We want to create healthy habits and be there for our children no matter what it is they are doing,” she says.
“A child’s nutrition and environmental factors have bigger contributions to their growth than their genes. It’s important to give them opportunities to sleep more, be active, and have proper nutrition during the first five years of life and before the second growth spurt when they reach puberty, to ensure that they achieve optimal growth,” Dr. Dimaano says.
Chesca also wants her kids to be involved in monitoring their growth and health. They started using the Growth Calculator during the pandemic a few years ago, and all her kids made it a fun activity to check their height. Chesca adds that Gavin feels extra motivated to reach his goal height, even joking around with his older sisters that he’ll be taller than them someday.
When parents support their children’s growth, they can raise happy and healthy kids with optimal height and physical well-being. The Kramer kids are good examples because Chesca says they don’t get sick often and that they have good grades in school. “What matters is that they have a happy disposition. They look forward to a lot of things and they perform well in school and extracurricular activities,” she says.
Using the Growth Calculator is just the beginning in ensuring that children are on track with their growth and development. Parents should always have a holistic approach to providing care for their children while making sure that they eat the right stuff and drink PediaSure Plus twice a day.
Visit this website to find out more about how you can support your child’s growth, especially if they’re at risk of stunting.
ADVT.