Researchers at Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital believed that a baby’s height is derived from its father’s genes, whilst its weight is derived from its mother’s.

Even though the findings were still very much a work in progress, the early indications showed that parents pass on specific gene plans to their offspring.

A sample of 1,000 children from their respective families had their height and weight measured at birth, then at three-months- old and finally at one-year-old. Other measurements, such as the head circumference were also taken. Via observation, it is very obvious that one of the biggest influences on a baby’s growth is the size of the mother, but it is also confirmed that a father’s height also has a direct impact on their baby’s growth, with taller dads having longer and heavier babies.

It is important to acknowledge that there are genetic as well as environmental factors so that more about babies’ growth can be understood.

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