You've just left the doctor's office with a piece of paper: "Your child is in the 60th percentile for height and the 45th for weight." What does that mean? Should you be worried?
What is a percentile?
A percentile shows how your child compares to other children of the same age and sex. Being in the 60th percentile means 59 out of 100 children are shorter and 40 are taller.
The key point: the 50th percentile is not "ideal." Any value between the 3rd and 97th percentile is considered normal.
WHO growth standards
The World Health Organization studied more than 8,000 children across 6 countries to create international growth standards. These standards are independent of race or geography — they describe how healthy children grow under optimal conditions.
The WHO growth chart has 5 main bands:
- Below the 3rd percentile: Consult your doctor
- 3rd – 15th percentile: Low range, monitor
- 15th – 85th percentile: Normal range
- 85th – 97th percentile: High range, monitor
- Above the 97th percentile: Consult your doctor
The curve matters more than a single measurement
The best way to assess a child's growth is not to look at one data point, but to track the trend over time. If your child consistently sits at the 30th percentile, that's completely normal. But a drop from the 70th to the 20th percentile in a few months is a signal worth investigating.
That's why regular measurement matters:
- 0–6 months: Monthly
- 6–12 months: Every 45 days
- 1–2 years: Every 3 months
- 2–5 years: Every 6 months
Growth tracking in Momena
When you enter height and weight measurements in Momena, the app automatically compares them against the WHO growth curve. You can see which percentile your child is in and follow the trend from birth to 60 months.
If you haven't entered a measurement in a while, the app reminds you — with a dynamic interval based on your child's age.
Your data stays on your device. It is never sent to any cloud server.