Members of the who Multicentre Growth Reference Study Group

TLDR

The WHO Multicentre Growth Reference Study is a community‑based, multicountry project that aims to develop new growth references for infants and young children. The study seeks to produce a single international reference that best describes physiological growth for all children under five and to establish the breastfed infant as the normative growth model. The study combines a longitudinal birth‑to‑24‑month cohort with a cross‑sectional sample of 18‑71‑month children, enrolling about 8,500 participants from six countries and collecting repeated anthropometric, motor, socioeconomic, and feeding data through 21 home visits.

Abstract

The World Health Organization (WHO) Multicentre Growth Reference Study (MGRS) is a community-based, multicountry project to develop new growth references for infants and young children. The design combines a longitudinal study from birth to 24 months with a cross-sectional study of children aged 18 to 71 months. The pooled sample from the six participating countries (Brazil, Ghana, India, Norway, Oman, and the United States) consists of about 8,500 children. The study subpopulations had socioeconomic conditions favorable to growth, and low mobility, with at least 20% of mothers following feeding recommendations and having access to breastfeeding support. The individual inclusion criteria were absence of health or environmental constraints on growth, adherence to MGRS feeding recommendations, absence of maternal smoking, single term birth, and absence of significant morbidity. In the longitudinal study, mothers and newborns were screened and enrolled at birth and visited at home 21 times: at weeks 1, 2, 4, and 6; monthly from 2 to 12 months; and every 2 months in their second year. In addition to the data collected on anthropometry and motor development, information was gathered on socioeconomic, demographic, and environmental characteristics, perinatal factors, morbidity, and feeding practices. The prescriptive approach taken is expected to provide a single international reference that represents the best description of physiological growth for all children under five years of age and to establish the breastfed infant as the normative model for growth and development.