Is there anything at all that will help with teenage boy's height?

[HasaDigaEebowai]

DS1 is 16 and hasn't grown taller for the past 18 months. He is currently 5 foot 5 and whilst ok that isn't tiny, it's certainly small and he is very self conscious about it. Even more so because DS2 who is currently 13 is almost 5 foot 8.

DH and I are not tall (I am 5 foot 4 and DH is 5 foot 10).

Is there anything at all that can boost height? Im concerned that he might have stopped growing already. Is this doctor referral territory or is there nothing that would be done for a teenage boy at this height?

Thoughts appreciated..

The wise old women ( my grannies) used the tried and tested method of doubling the child's height at age 2 for boys and 18months for girls. My MIL said it was nonsense and our DS wouldn't be tall (and certainly not as tall as her 6'2" son) because I'm only 5'4". The 2 year old was 3'2" on his second birthday and at 16 is 6'3". Hoping he stops soon while he can still get through doorways. Useful for getting stuff out of high cupboards though.

@HasaDigaEebowai Did your DS1 hit a growth spurt a bit later on? My teen nephew is a bit self conscious about his height and in a bit of a similar boat x

@HasaDigaEebowai Would love to know what happened to OP's DS, mine is 19yrs old now and stopped at 5ft 6. He's enjoying his life.

No growth for a while. He had a small increase and has stopped at 5 foot 7. He’s now 18.

ds2 is over six foot..

@HasaDigaEebowai 5ft 7 isn't a bad height but can imagine how he feels with a younger sibling who's 6ft. Must be quite upsetting for him but there's nothing he can do about it. Best to just accept his height and learn to be comfortable in his own skin.

A friend of mine is a football coach and he said (with the caveat that this was a result of years of observation and no training whatsoever) that boys seen to stop growing once they have fully grown the ‘man hair’ on their thighs (as opposed to the bottom of their legs, which comes in much earlier). His observation was this was an indication of the end of puberty and growth. We were talking about my son at the time who was 16 and 170 cm and hadn’t grown in over a year. He’s grown a centimetre suddenly in the last month.

@MarciaRo i don't have a son. In my earlier post had been describing my husband's growth pattern.

I don't know for sure how tall he was at 16 but I suspect he was a lot shorter than 5'9". His mother wouldn't have worried at all about having a 16 year old who was 5'9" because 1) his father was 5'8" and 2) 5'9" is the average male height in the UK.

I know he did all his growing at 17 and 18 because his mother used to talk about how many pairs of school trousers she had had to buy him in the 6th form. He is now 6'3". Or rather he was. He's in his 70s so has probably shrunk a bit.

I think some children just grow later than others. One of my daughters was tiny until she was 15. She then shot up and is now 5'8". I had assumed she took after me (I am short). But it seems more likely that she takes after her father by being a late developer.

I would try not to worry, especially as your son has a tall father and I gather that men carry on growing until they are 21.

Jumping on this thread
Ds16 is 5ft 4.5
Hes starting to get self conscious about his height and thinks he may not ever find a girlfriend. He says he's in for a life time of issues being a small man as most woman don't find a small man attractive:-(
He's meant to reach 5ft 7 which would be great but he hasn't really grown since about 14.5 although he has built muscle and got broarder.

Daniel Radcliffe and Josh Hutcherson are 5'5" as well as 3 out of the 4 members of Fall Out Boy. Probably many more famous and non famous men who are this height - I don't think it's anything that needs to be medicalised.

Daniel Radcliffe & Josh whatsit are famous millionaires! that's the difference. You only have to read what posters say on MN to see the amount of contempt women have for short men. It's disgusting really, considering those short teens/men are someone's son. Mind you, probably the same women are moaning on another thread about their 6ft 5 useless partner, so tall height doesn't equal a great partner.

I've heard it so much from so many women in conversation and men take the P of short men too and If they argue or show any personality its deemed 'short man syndrome' so it is harder being a short man I think.

How far into puberty is your son @Stormyseas82?

IAbout 13 when he started to go through it.