Changes in height standard deviation scores during early life are affected by nutrition

BACKGROUND Large changes in height standard deviation score (SDS) have been reported from birth to 3 years of age. We analyzed how early these changes started and whether these changes were affected by nutrition. METHODS The longitudinal growth of 1,849 children born between March 1, 2007 and August 31, 2007 or between March 1, 2009 and August 31, 2009 with five records from birth to 3 years of age was analyzed. RESULTS The height SDS at birth was positively correlated with body mass index (BMI) SDS at birth (r = 0.224, p<0.0001). The height SDS at birth decreased among children with positive height SDSs and increased among children with negative height SDSs. The changes occurred immediately after birth and became more modest as children aged. Regarding the change in the height SDS from birth to 3 years of age, 33.4% of children increased more than 0.5 SDs, 39.8% of children decreased more than 0.5 SDs, and 34.4% of children remained within ±0.5 SDs. The change in the height SDS displayed a strong positive correlation with the change in weight during the four periods. CONCLUSIONS The significant positive correlation between the height SDS and BMI SDS suggests an effect of children's nutrition status in utero. The height SDS change started immediately after birth and the change was largest from birth to 3 months. A positive correlation between changes in height SDS and weight suggest that growth during early childhood depends on nutritional status.