Can you help me reassure son (or not [smile])

[Callmemadam]

Eldest ds was 16 in April and is a perfectly normal 5'11" or 181cm and weighs 88kgs - fit and active, but has a very big rugby players frame. He hasn't grown more than 1cm in the last 10-12 months. However, he does seem to have quite a bit of puppy fat compared with his peers although he eats a very balanced diet and always has done. Dad is 6'5". DS is quietly very upset that he appears to have stopped growing as he 'expected' to be 6' or more when older and I can't say anything to make him feel better . Is it true that most boys stop growing at 16? He seems to be hairily mature etc although his spotty phase seems to have started this summer and his hands are fairly small for his size. Does anyone out there have any words of comfort for him - would be hugely appreciated!

DH was 5'8 at 16 and when I met him at 44 he was 6'. He is shorter now as he is 11 years older but that is because you shrink as you get older.

He grew at about 17/18.

Dh says he was definitely still growing at 16+. He's now 6'4".

When my DS was seeing a growth specialist, he was told that teenage boys normally stop growing at 17-18, but as DS had started late, he would probably go on growing till 20 or 21 (He will be 20 at Xmas and is still growing)

I'm sure I read girls tend to stop growing round about 16 but boys carry on as late as 21. Why not do a quick internet search? Bound to be some relevant articles you could show him...

My brother was only 5'2" at 16 but managed to reach the heady heights of 5'9" by 18 so by no means is it certain has your DS stopped growing at 16!

I think it's a case of he'll just have to wait and see.
He isn't going to grow as fast now he's older- but that doesn't mean he has stopped completely.
5'11 is still taller than a lot of men anyway

dp's brother went really tall from about 5"9 -6"2 between the ages of 19-21 so no they don't stop growing at 16!

I have known boys grow a lot in the late teenage years.I would say he probably will grow some more.
Boy across the road from us grew 3-4 inches between 16-18yrs,he's now 6ft4,his mother was surprised as she'd assumed he had stopped growing at 6ft.

when school finished at 16 (no sixth form on site) i stopped seeing most of the boys from school on a daily basis... a lot of my classmates met up for a reunion 2 yrs later and all the boys had grown and changed tons. was really quite taken aback tbh.
theres still time.

Boys don't stop growing until they are around 18.

A lot of boys slow down around 16 and seem to stop growing then have a growth spurt around 19. DH says he stopped at 16 then had a growth spurt at about 19 or 20

I read somewhere boys stop growing at 21 (girls a bit sooner). I doubt if he has finished at 16 and if he has a bit of puppy fat, maybe he still has a bit of growing to do?

DH reckons he was still growing at 18 or 19.

Boys grow until 21.

Awwww you are all SO encouraging - I will show him this thread, I think! I got the 16 bit from trawling on the internet so I will stop that and rely on MN instead