To worry about short DS because my husband is really tall?

[Dadadaa]

DS is 13 months. The HV said at the 1 year check that he was in the 2nd percentile for height (dropping from 50th when he was 4 months old) which worried me but when I got home and checked online he was actually around the 14th, then I remeasured him at 13 months and he'd dropped to the 11th. He looks quite slight although is on the 50th percentile for weight and he loves eating - 3x meals a day plus I'm still feeding 2-3 times a day. I'm worried because my husband is 6'5'' (I'm 5'6'') and I'd kind of assumed our son would be tall (all the men on his side are above 6'3'', although on my side the men are around 5'8/9''). Should I be worried as there may be an issue with his growth? My HV wants to see him again in a couple of months.

Any dropping of centiles is cause for keeping an eye on things..does he sleep well and is he active? Has he had lots of colds or illnesses or stomachbugs?

I don’t have kids so have no idea about percentiles but anecdotally, my brother’s best friend was so small he played Tiny Tim in a Dickens play at school when he was 12. By the time he was 15 he was over 6ft. Growth comes in fits and starts.

What are the height differences in measurements between those percentiles? I always find it impossible to get DS to stay still enough to be completely accurate and often with those charts a centre can account for a lot of percentile etc

I agree. As long as your baby is well, don't worry about height at the moment though if you are still concerned, mention it at his check up.

If he's dropped off his line, I think 2 centile drop Is what they look for, he may be meeting the failure to thrive criteria so needs seeing by the GP and/or dietician. He may have an underlying allergy or similar.

Generally being small isn't a concern if he's still in his range of normal though

Apparently we get our height from our mother's side, which is true for my DC. DH 5'8", DSs 6'2 & 6'3". All my male cousins on my mother's side are well over 6 ft and from an era when 6ft was tall!

But he'll be whatever height he is and they grow in spurts anyway.

Keep an eye on him for dropping centiles.

But in terms of him being tall in general, not a thing at all. One of my good friends is around 5ft 5 and her husband over 6ft. Son takes after her and is short and stocky. Daughter takes after the dad and is tall and skinny like a model! Genetics does funny things.

just like I have a brown eyed friend who’s got a daughter with the bluest eyes and red hair.

The mother's thing is bunkum. My mum was 5'2 . DSis is 5'5 and I'm 5'7. My sons are both well over 6 foot and DD is 5'3.

My mum's tiny too, but the men on her side of the family are tall.

Our son was 10th percentile for height at 12 months. Our daughter was 98th so we were quite concerned, but around 18 months until 2.5 he rapidly grew, then continued at a steady pace and he's now one of the 2 tallest children in his year group.

I was in a similar situation last year. My DC dropped to the 0.2nd centile for weight soon after turning 1 after sitting around the 17th since birth (never seen a HV F2F so wasn’t really measuring her height but she was also 0.2nd for that). I spoke to the HV who suggested GP for referral since she’d dropped centile lines. We’ve been under the endo consultant since then, had lots of bloods taken, a few minor mineral deficiencies have shown up but no genetic or growth factor issues. Consultant is concerned since me and DH aren’t short (5’8 and 6’2) and my DC1 is over the 90th for height. I do worry as she’s not a great eater (although eats brilliantly at nursery) but her development is fine. It’s a bit of a mystery but luckily her weight has gone up to the 9th and her rate of growth calculation has increased significantly since the last time we had an appointment (still stuck on the 0.2nd line though 😔).

We also got referred to a dietitian at the beginning but we just got a letter saying they’re not taking on new referrals anymore!

If you’re worried I’d call the HV back to discuss it again and see if it’s worth contacting the GP. Good luck.

I have twins... One was much much smaller despite weighing 2lb more at birth.. (at 3 was on 2nd percentile and followed it up, the other in 92nd) by 13 there were 20kg and 26cm between them in the last year the "small" one has shot up and out.. they are now near enough the same size.

When did you and your DH stop growing?

I stopped at 18 which is are for women and DH 14 (his Mum & sister 11) which is early for men.

One child took after him and was always tall but was fully grown at 11 and a other carries on until 17 - they are both the same height now! The other was in the middle.

I am just over 5 ft, my husband was 5ft 9 and we have 2 adult sons. 1st son followed the 50th centile right up to puberty. His adult height is 5 ft 7.
my second son followed the 25th centile right up to puberty and didn’t have a growth spurt until 15. His adult height is 6 ft 2.
There are no tall men on my side of the family. My brother is 5 ft 9 same as my dad was. My grandfather was even shorter. The men in my husbands family were all under 6 ft. His brother is shorter than 5 ft 9. The only men over 6 ft in both sides of my family are 2 male cousins on my side and one on my husbands.
But after that long ramble I really wouldn’t be worrying now as long as he is thriving in all other areas.

Your baby is only 13 months old! Dropping centiles obviously isn't great but it doesn't necessarily mean anything. It doesn't take much for a baby to lose weight if they've been unwell.

But you really need to put thoughts of his height out of your mind. You really cannot tell at this age.

Are you worried your child will be short, or that he’s unwell?

My DS has dropped centiles in height and we are currently under investigation. If you're worried it might be worth asking for a celiac and thyroid blood test.

My 6’4 17 year old was such a dainty baby and toddler. He was still in 12-18 month clothes at 3!

try not to worry.

My dd1 was fairly short and small in weight as a baby. She’s 13 now and 5’4”, so growing slowly. I shot up in height myself as a teen at 16 when I left school. So much so that old school pals were saying ‘I don’t remember you being that tall?’
I’d say your ds is too young to be worrying about his height.

I don’t know if this is true. My Mils family are all taller than average. Fil wasn’t short but not very tall either, probably around five ten. DH and his sister are both quite short, it seems likely to be from their paternal grandmother who was very short. Neither DH nor his sister are taller than either parent, although DH probably just about reached his mother’s height.
Anyway OP, yes it needs checking, but ime taller people fall into two camps, always tall, the tallest in the class at 13 etc. (My two close school friends), and the tinies who then have a massive growth spurt later than everyone else, and end up tall (me and my brother, both very small until 16) .

This.

Our Prime minister
Is 5ft 7. So what?

My son grew 1cm between his first and second birthdays. He was healthy and happy he just never grew. As a result he was always tiny compared to his peers. His sister is 2.5 years younger and they were almost the same height for a long time, he then had a huge growth spurt at age 11. He’s now almost 18 and 5ft9, so not hugely tall but his dad and I are 5ft8 and 5ft 4 respectively. His sisters are both 5ft 2 so he has made the height he ‘should’ have.
keep an eye on him, but unless there is a true growth issue there isn’t anything you can do.

It can be hard to tell when children are very young what height they might be at fully grown.

Dd2 was very small at birth on due date . Stayed very small until she was 10 years old. Smallest in her class by a long way.

Then suddenly just after her 10th birthday she grew 6 inches within a few months and by age 12 was towering over all the ‘tall’ children. She is now 15 and over 5 foot 7 and still growing.

Dd1 was average on all the charts and is now 5 foot 2 and stopped growing at about 12 years old. (18 now )

Im 5 foot 6 and DH is 6 foot .

both my DC were biggies at birth - 8lbs 7oz or thereabouts. a few months on, they were in 3-5th centile and stayed that way for years - i was a 11lb baby at birth and looked like a balloon in baby photos. My babies, short/very lean and visibly less chunky/shorter than other babies same age.

DC2 - 8 has become more average now but still is quite small in terms of height/weight - i'd guess 60% of her class are bigger than her.

DC1 is still tiny - i was actually a bit worried about her height and weight - still 3rd centile, very tiny and lean, girls in her year are broader and head/shoulders taller than her. When I was 12, i was 5 ft 5 towering over 99% the boys and girls in my year!

I'm 5 ft 9, so not huge but taller than most women i encounter.

DH is 6 ft 2, again, tall but not unusually tall.

If the weight has rapidly come off and there are only minimal gains at a very slow rate and other unusual or atypical factors, maybe speak to HV?

13 month is still very young and 50th centile is very respectable.

13 months I’d way too early to be worried! Puberty can completely change the game. I increased height percentiles after (on track for 5ft6, but I’m 5ft8).