Comparative length and weight growth in Khartoum infants

First-year postnatal growth of supine length and body weight of a group of Khartoum infants is analysed in terms of the correlation coefficients between birth dimension on the one hand and (1) subsequent distance growth at monthly intervals and (2) the 11-monthly increments on the other. It is shown that the whole of the first-year length growth is dominated by catch-up/catch-down processes which must equally affect the infants. Weight growth is similarly affected, but to a lesser degree and for a shorter time. After 6 months of age some of the influences that determined prenatal weight growth reappear. Using data extracted from fitting growth curves to each individual the correlational analysis suggests a growth pulse in both length and weight, which is responsible for distance catch-up.