AbstractThere is no definitive conclusion concerning the long‐debated issue of whether one international growth reference is sufficient for assessing the growth of all children regardless of racial background. Although nurses and health professionals in North America primarily use the National Health Centre for Health Statistics growth reference data to identify atypical growth, recognizing potential abnormalities in non‐Caucasians remains difficult. After exploring the issues surrounding this question, the authors concluded that an international growth reference is required to provide a common point of comparison of growth for the population groups from different countries. Arguments can be made for developing reference standards for particular racial groups, although several difficulties and limitions preclude t