At 16 months old, babies are already able to walk, explore, and learn about everything around them. During this period, babies may lose weight or gain weight slowly. Therefore, parents often wonder how much a 16-month-old baby weighs, whether it is within the standard range or not,... This article will analyze in more detail the height, weight, and nutrition of a 16-month-old baby so that parents can take the best care of their baby.
1. How much does a 16-month-old baby weigh and how tall are they?
How much does a 16-month-old baby weigh? Boys will weigh about 9.4 - 11.8kg, with an average of 10.5kg. Girls weigh about 8.7 - 11.2kg, with an average of 9.8kg. So, a 16-month-old baby weighing 11kg is within the standard range. If a 16-month-old baby weighs 8kg, the baby is showing signs of malnutrition, with a weight lower than the standard.
In terms of height, a 16-month-old boy is 75.4 - 80.2cm tall, with an average of 77.5cm. For 16-month-old girls, the height is about 73 - 84.2cm, with an average of 78.6cm.
In terms of sleep, babies need to sleep 11-14 hours a day. Usually, babies will nap and go to bed early in the evening. In addition, at this stage, children also develop motor skills, cognition, emotions, and social interaction.
2. What can a 16-month-old baby do?
Some notable developmental milestones in 16-month-old babies include:
- Walking: Most 16-month-olds are quite proficient at walking. This is the foundation for the next major developmental milestones such as climbing, running, walking backward, and jumping to music;
- Teeth eruption: As early as 16 months, your baby's canine teeth may start to erupt;
- Potty training: Although at this stage, babies still need diapers mainly, parents can still train their babies to use the potty early so that they get used to signaling adults when they need to go to the toilet or know how to sit on the potty or toilet;
- Talking and singing: When they are 16 months old, babies often like to listen to songs and try to sing along with their parents. Babies can say about 3 words, and even 15-20 words.
3. Nutrition for a 16-month-old baby
Beside the question of how much a 16-month-old baby weighs, parents are also very concerned about their child's nutrition. A 16-month-old baby's diet has some of the following notes:
3.1. Choosing good foods for your baby
- Whole grains: This is an essential part of building a healthy diet for a 16-month-old baby. Parents can prepare delicious dishes for their babies such as porridge, mashed rice, oatmeal soup, bread,...;
- Fruits: Fruits not only provide fiber but also contain many essential vitamins for the baby's body. For 16-month-old babies, parents can give their babies more fruits like bananas, mangoes, kiwis, watermelon,... every day to build a habit of eating fruits for babies from an early age;
- Eggs and meat: These are nutrient-rich foods that are very good for 16-month-old babies;
- Vegetables: To add more flavor for your baby, you can give your baby boiled or steamed vegetables like potatoes, carrots, cauliflower,... with sauce, making it more delicious for your baby to eat;
- Fats: Fats have the function of storing energy to serve all activities of the body and help children grow healthier. Therefore, in a child's diet, parents should give their children good fats such as coconut oil, olive oil, avocado,...;
- Dairy products: In addition to powdered milk products, parents should give their children more foods derived from milk such as yogurt, cheese, curd,...;
- Nuts and legumes: These are foods that are rich in minerals, good for the development of children. Parents should cook delicious dishes from black beans, green beans, walnuts,... for their children;
- Iron-rich foods: The baby's body needs iron to help produce blood. Therefore, parents should supplement iron for 16-month-old babies with iron-rich foods such as liver, tomatoes, beef,... In addition, it is necessary to combine these foods with foods rich in vitamin C because vitamin C helps the body absorb iron better.
3.2. Some important notes
- Meal times: The standard for eating 1 day for children is 3 main meals and 2 snacks. Interspersed to that are breastfeeding, formula feeding or cow's milk;
- Diet: At this time, children can eat many foods similar to adults, so parents need to diversify food groups and change dishes frequently to improve children’s appetite. In addition, it is necessary to supplement with additional dishes to meet the developmental needs of children. Priority should be given to choosing fresh foods and ensuring hygiene when preparing for children;
- Food quantity: According to doctors, most toddlers need about 1000 calories per day. However, parents should note that the portion size of a 16-month-old baby is only 1/4 of an adult's portion. Parents should not force children to eat too much to avoid vomiting because the stomach is still small and cannot digest food quickly;
- Other notes: Parents should avoid cooking separate meals for their children, especially powdered or finely sieved porridge, as it is not good for the development of 16-month-old children's teeth. Also, do not give children too many processed grains, canned fruits, ready-made fast food,... If your child is a picky eater, refuses to eat, it may be because your child is sick, has a fever, is teething,... so parents need to diversify foods in meals, cook soft food for your baby to chew and digest easily.
- The article has helped parents understand how much a 16-month-old baby should weigh and suggested a diet for their baby. Parents need to closely monitor their child's development to understand their health and physical condition and intervene promptly when necessary.
- In addition, 16-month-old children need 5mg of elemental zinc per day for good eating, reaching the standard height and weight and exceeding the standard. Zinc plays a role in most biological processes in the body, especially the process of degradation and synthesis of nucleic acids, proteins... Organs in the body when lacking zinc can lead to some diseases such as neurological disorders, easy irritability,... Therefore, parents need to learn about the role of zinc and guide appropriate zinc supplementation for their children.
In addition to zinc, parents also need to supplement their children with other important vitamins and minerals such as lysine, chromium, vitamin B group,... to help children eat well, have a good immune system, and increase resistance to minor illnesses.
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