On the Utility of Growth Curves

In this issue ofThe JOURNAL, Yip et al1describe the changes that have taken place in a decade (1980 through 1989) in the birth weight and early childhood growth of children of low-income immigrant families from Southeast Asia. While Asian See also p 937. immigrant infants and young children showed a marked shift in growth status toward the reference standards of the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS),2during this same period the status of black, white, and Hispanic subjects from the same low-income population remained essentially unchanged. Data were collected through the Centers for Disease Control Pediatric Nutrition Surveillance System, which monitors the status of children who are receiving services through certain public health and nutrition programs (in major part through the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children). The data show a fall in incidence of low birth weight (less than 2500 g)