New Height Predictor to Estimate Children's Adult Height

Main Category: Pediatrics / Children's Health
Article Date: 24 May 2005 - 19:00 PDT

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Olympic gymnast or NBA basketball star? BabyCenter, the leading online resource for pregnancy and parenting information, has upgraded the most popular interactive tool on ParentCenter.com to give curious parents a clearer vision of their child's future. With an expanded age range, now parents of children as young as 2 can use the ParentCenter.com Height Predictor to determine if planning for a basketball scholarship is a reasonable college funding scheme.

For children under age 4, the improved tool uses the new "Multiplier Method," outlined in the October 2004 issue of The Journal of Pediatric Orthopedics, in which height forecasts are based on average height multipliers calculated from Centers for Disease Control data. For children ages 4 and older, the ParentCenter.com Height Predictor uses the widely accepted Khamis and Roche method that relies on height measurements of each parent for its predictions. ParentCenter.com is the first Web site to integrate the two leading methods into one easy-to-use tool.

"Parents often hope that they have passed along favorite traits to their child," said Katie Motta, the BabyCenter Associate Editor who oversaw development of the improved tool. "Even when their child's still a newborn, they usually can identify that 'he has his dad's eyes, and mom's chin.' But one thing parents want to know is how tall their child will be. The Height Predictor is based on the latest science, but it's really just a fun way to help parents imagine their child as an adult."

In addition to the expanded Height Predictor, ParentCenter.com offers an array of useful interactive tools including the Family Entertainment Finder, Behavior Problem Solver, Learning Styles Calculator, and Activity Planner designed to help parents raise great kids. The site also offers more than a thousand original articles, covering children's health and nutrition, fun and activities, learning and development, along with other topics for families with young children. Information is organized by age so parents easily can find the most relevant expert advice, along with ideas and tips from thousands of other moms and dads who've shared their experiences.

About BabyCenter(R)

Founded in 1997, BabyCenter operates http://www.babycenter.com, the most visited online resource for new and expectant parents, http://www.parentcenter.com, the leading online resource for parents of children ages 2 to 8, and http://www.babycentre.co.uk , the leading U.K. resource for new and expectant parents. Offering extensive, medical advisory board-approved content, BabyCenter's Web sites attract over 3.5 million visitors each month, as measured by comScore Media Metrix, and have been honored with numerous awards, including the 2005 People's Voice Webby Award for Best Family/Parenting Web site. In addition, the BabyCenter sites offer an array of interactive tools, a supportive online community, a premium subscription service, and an online store featuring thousands of products for parents and children.

Source:
BabyCenter

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