To be worried my teen son won’t grow any more?

[Tradversionok]

He’s not far off 16 and he’s 5ft 6. We are not a family of giants, he’s not shaving or anything, and he’s a late bloomer (grew 6 inches in 14 months) - but I still worry that’s it. No more in the tank. I guess I can’t know.

I worry because I can see him internalise it, brush it off but get upset by it and compare himself to his friends. And I just want him to feel good about himself. To feel confident and to find a girlfriend and feel good about that side of his life (when he’s ready etc)

obviously I boost him all the time. I think he’s wonderful and tell him. I’ve just come here to voice my anxieties.

My son is 14 and 5’2, I am secretly worried but he has hardly any signs of puberty so I’m hoping is just delayed and am taking him to doc soon

In my experience the big spurt comes around 18. Girls generally stop growing at 15ish. Boys always later, aeound 18. My SS was about same height as me at 16 (5'7) hes now 6'3 at 25.

Tom Cruise is 5ft 7, and is a handsome movie star.
His height hasn't kept him back.
He can wear hidden heels in shoes to give him height when hes older if that helps?
Or he can embrace it and shine as he is 🌟

I know some shorter guys who go to the gym and are as strong as an Ox and their presence fills the room. 💪
I know tall lanky guys who try to sink away into the background, like a wall-flower. 🥀
I also know someone who needed growth hormone therapy and that helped them to grow taller, but it was for a medical condition - not aesthetics. 💉
I also know a lad who was tiny at age 11 (the second smallest in his year) who had a growth spurt at 18 and now he's well over 6 foot 3. It just depends really. 🙃

It depends on your confidence and how you carry yourself really. 💯
Has your son expressed any anxiety over his height?

@Tradversionok

How many growth spurts has he had? Most boys have two, and grow a good 5 or 6 inches in each one, with a pause in between. Then afterwards they sometimes grow another inch or two but not in a massive spurt.

As a result sometimes the ones that start their spurts later end up taller, as they were taller when they started.

Most boys will continue growing until 17/18 years (whereas girls usually stop growing around 15/16 years).

FWIW I have four male friends that are around your son's height or only slightly taller - they all have good careers and families. Their height is a complete non-issue (I've never heard any of them even comment on it). Two have shorter wives, the other two taller.

Is he eating lots of red meat...this worked for us!!

When did it work? I’ve been eating a cow every day and I haven’t grown even a centimetre yet.

OP, even if your son doesn’t get taller, it’s not the end of the world. Everyone has something they want to change. I remember having no boobs when I was younger (still don’t have them), and boys were very mean about it. My best male friend is that height and his wife is 190cms. She’s an absolute stunner and so is he. Everything feels like the end of the world at that age.

My 15y old is also 5ft 6 - doesn't seem that short to me? But I am only 5ft myself. I'm sure they've got a couple more inches to go and will end up 5 7/8 whcihc seems fine to me - not everyone has to be ginormouus.

We saw a display at the New Scientist last year where they had an ultrasound which showed whether the growth plates in have fused. Some athletics clubs use them to group athletes by bone maturity from what I remember. If you know of any sports academies they might do this or you could ask a pediatrician - they prefer doing this as there is no radiation. However gold standard is an Xray which is a bone age study of the left hand and wrist. You can see when it has fused as it calcifies, which in boys is usually between 15 and 19 years old.

Also recommend vit D3 while they are growing to help with bone growth. Lots of us in UK are deficient because we get so much grey cloudy weather up here in the NH.

Could just be genetic but could also be he needs some growth hormones? Why don’t you take him to the GP?

My brother turned into a giant at 16!

And my son’s best friend, who had always been the short friend ended up at 6’4” by the time he finished school.

It’s got more to do with genetics than anything. Do you have tall people in your family?

My son grew steadily rather than in sudden spurts. He hit 6’ 1” around 18 and I thought that was it. At 20 he’s now 6’ 3”. They can grow for quite a while.

My son is 25th centile so will be small. Didnt think it was an issue?

my ds is 17 and about the same, ( his younger brother is over 6ft and his 13 yr old sister is taller) I did take him to the doc about a year ago just to rule out any underlying issues, they did a dexa scan and said his bone age was actually two years behind so he has a lot of growing still to do.

Dexa scans usually check bone density - not hugely reliable for growth/biological or skeletal age. Odd for your doctor to suggest that?

I’m female and I grew an extra inch between 18 and 21. You’re not completely done until adulthood.

i was delighted as im v short and the extra boost brought me to a staggering 5’1” 😆

I did the same and ended up taller than I ever wanted to be. Was very envious of the petite girls who could be girly and made men feel like giants. I guess the grass is always greener!

My husband often talks about a school mate who was short. Went to a different college, and was serving in his pub 2 years later, and very tall.
Hopefully people are less pathetic than they used to be. Jokes about gay people, racism, ableism or anything people can't control etc have got less popular, and the idea that only a tall, white, classically beautiful man matters went out last century (Mike Myers/Prince etc wouldn't have been as popular in my grandparents' time).

My ds was taller than both of his primary aged best friends, much taller. During comp we'd see them occasionally but not often and alfhough they had grown they were still shorter. Saw one i these lads about 2 months ago (starting 2nd yr of alevels/college) and i didn't recognise him as he had had a growth spurt and is now about 5'10 and looks like a man, not a teenager!
Lads especially can grow for many yrs after girls stop.
Is your ds concerned or are you just worried for him? Personally I dont think 5'6 is particularly short even if thats it for him

Agreed someone has to be short

My sons were about 19 when they finally stopped growing.

Sleep was key for them. Over the summer holidays they'd barely leave their beds some days and I swear they were noticeably taller when they finally surfaced!

I'm 5'3 and stopped growing at 11 but my mom and sister (5'8 and 5'9) both grew an inch in college.

OP, there is a fomula at the back of his red book that is a pretty good indicator of mature adult height. It uses the heights of his parents and then calculates a range.

If he hasn't started shaving, that indicates puberty isn't done yet.

Mine was about 5'7", very thin despite a massive appetite and not shaving at 16. The summer he turned 17, he developed facial fluff and started growing fast. He's now 6'2".

If no sign of further growth by 17, and his red book formula indicates he would likely be taller, you could check with his GP.

My DS was a late grower. He eats and eats! He is much taller than his older brother who has no appetite and eats very little. He had a big spurt at around 15-16 but he is still growing slowly at nearly 18.