...Atul Singhal Growth faltering Catch-up growth Growth acceleration At a population level, attained size (rather than the pattern of growth) is widely used to define normal or abnormal growth and as an indicator of population health. Cut-offs of <2 z -scores for length/height...

.... Experimental (randomized) studies in both breast- and formula-fed infants support a causal link between early growth acceleration and infant nutrition and later risk of obesity. These observations suggest that strategies to optimize the pattern of infant growth could make a major contribution to stemming...