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Teenagers

Parenting teenagers has its ups and downs. Get advice from Mumsnetters here.

Original poster

Ds 15 is very small and doesn't seem to be growing.

136 replies

Lilyana · 05/05/2022 19:22

DS 15 is 5ft 3, by far the smallest boy in his class/year. I'm 5ft 6 and they always say boys are taller than their mums. He hasn't grown since last November. Is there a chance he will have a growth spurt later on even though he seems to have stopped for a while?

OP posts:
tomatoandherbs · 06/05/2022 15:51

Daftasabroom · 06/05/2022 15:49

I'm a man. At that age I was 5'2" and my younger brother was taller than me. I topped out a little under 6'0".

Out of interest
were you a vegan and did you have a very short father?

tomatoandherbs · 06/05/2022 15:57

Does that mean that no matter what happens in the child's environment, the height can never change more than this? Can special treatment and nutrient supplements increase the height further? The answer is yes. The most important nutrient for final height is protein in childhood. Minerals, in particular calcium, and vitamins A and D also influence height.

www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-much-of-human-height/

very well respected scientific journal

Remmy123 · 06/05/2022 17:21

If he hasn't started puberty then I wouid seek help but if he has then I dont see an issue (unless he is losing weight)

i say this as my son is 13.5 and not a hint of puberty or growth (5ft) and we are having this investigated with a view to hormone injections, if needed.

but he has been a right misery the last two weeks I'm hoping puberty is gearing up!

nolongersurprised · 06/05/2022 22:30

His age is the important predictor of future growth, his pubertal status is.

Sex hormones fuel the growth spurt but When testosterone levels are high enough growth plates fuse. I suspect the children on this thread who were short at 15 but grew until 18 were in that group of children who were later than average (but still normal) to get going.

95 percent of healthy boys have started puberty by 14 but that means there’s still a significant number who haven’t even started, meaning they’ll be growing when most of their peers have stopped. Parents’ age of puberty is relevant.

If he looks like a boy there’s growth to come, if he looks like a man he’s probably done.

some posters mentioned a bone age (left wrist and hand) which will clarify where the growth plates are at. If his bone age isn’t delayed he’s probably not got much growth yet.

nolongersurprised · 06/05/2022 22:31

*his age isn’t the important predictor of future growth

Girliefriendlikespuppies · 06/05/2022 23:45

A vegan diet is very restrictive at a time when he needs a lot of calcium, fats and protein and I would guess it's impacting his growth.

Some people can cope well on a vegan diet and some can't which comes down to genetics.

I personally wouldn't have allowed my teen dd to become vegan, she wanted to become veggie but we settled on a pescatarian in the end.

Getoffmyshoes · 07/05/2022 00:25

tomatoandherbs · 06/05/2022 15:50

oh I love a bit of advanced searching when I’m in sainsburys queue!

yes but to be so open minded and passionate about height being unimportant on this thread but so patently finding thinning hair something to find very unappealing is an interesting contradiction

It isn’t a contradiction. Perhaps you need to work on your comprehension skills 🤷🏻‍♀️

tomatoandherbs · 07/05/2022 06:40

This thread is depressing! So what if he’s not the tallest guy, I’m sure he has plenty of other characteristics he can bring to the table.

the contradiction is that in your other post you pretty much explicitly say that a man with thinning hair and a belly is unattractive and you actually “roll my eyes” If someone is with someone with thinning hair and a belly and thinks they have “bagged a catch.”

But surely “he has plenty of other characteristics to bring to the table” and why can’t he be “a catch” irrespective od his hair?

a very very obvious contradiction!

StuntNun · 07/05/2022 06:43

My 15-year-old son is 5'6" but has friends that are still much shorter than him. Is your son in puberty yet? It should have started by about age 14.

Oblomov22 · 07/05/2022 07:52

Loads of my friends are vegan. But he is probably lacking protein and possibly other vitamins eg B12 is the classic one. What about suggesting a blood test to check and then he can take a supplement if necessary?

NikiNooNa · 07/05/2022 08:27

This reply has been withdrawn

This message has been withdrawn at the poster's request

Oblomov22 · 07/05/2022 09:43

How is it an awful thread? Many comments are super supportive of OP, eg suggesting she talk to GP. How is that awful. How do you know there isn't a medical issue? @NikiNooNa

NikiNooNa · 07/05/2022 09:54

I guess because if he is just short (which seems likely as op said puberty occurred and lots of adults are 5'3) taking him to a gp sort of suggests something is wrong that needs fixing.

I'd be tempted to have a private chat with gp first if super concerned like if other development isn't occurring.

Just an opinion of course but I'd be horrified to think my son felt he was less than due to height and wouldn't want to reinforce that idea.

PentaBike · 07/05/2022 09:59

I haven't RTFT. Can I please briefly piggy back on this thread (Apologies in advance OP) Flowers

What's going on with e.g. a girl who was always among the tallest until about year 5 but is now among the shortest in year 8? No period yet and very gradual signs of puberty (mainly hair growth and the beginnings of breast growth). At 13, is she just late to puberty? Is it likely she will grow before getting her period? Is this uncommon? I have tried to strata a thread on this but got no replies. Any helpful views?

JustHereWithMyPopcorn · 07/05/2022 10:00

He’s only just turned 15 @NikiNooNa he still has growing to do, he has stated he doesn’t want to be short, people have not been horrible on this thread they have, in the ma8n, offered sensible advice or reassurances which I think the OP was looking for.

NikiNooNa · 07/05/2022 10:02

Ok fair enough 😊 no offence meant. Just saying some boys / men are just short which is ok!

JustHereWithMyPopcorn · 07/05/2022 10:02

@pentabike yes, sounds she’s not hit puberty fully, 13 isn’t late though.

JustHereWithMyPopcorn · 07/05/2022 10:04

@NikiNooNa yes of course that’s OK, we’d be a weird world if we were all the same. I know a lot of boys do struggle with the idea of not being tall though so it’s not surprising to hear the concern from him and OP.

RampantIvy · 07/05/2022 10:10

Does he eat vegan fake burgers and sausages and other vegan protein?

AnotherPoster · 07/05/2022 10:15

I'm a bit taller than you but if you just think of it in terms of mother to son height difference, all 3 of my sons did not match my height until they were 15. They are now all adults. One is only a couple of inches taller than me but the other 2 are both over 6 foot. Your son, if he has only just turned 15, has years of potential growth in front of him an could easily gain 3 inches (to match your height) in the next few months.

And as for those saying most boys are fully grown by 16, you obviously have not experienced sending your 18 year off to university and then marvelling at the beeanpole that comes home in the holidays!

tomatoandherbs · 07/05/2022 10:52

This reply has been deleted

This message has been withdrawn at the poster's request

😐
what is awful about it?

tomatoandherbs · 07/05/2022 10:54

NikiNooNa · 07/05/2022 09:54

I guess because if he is just short (which seems likely as op said puberty occurred and lots of adults are 5'3) taking him to a gp sort of suggests something is wrong that needs fixing.

I'd be tempted to have a private chat with gp first if super concerned like if other development isn't occurring.

Just an opinion of course but I'd be horrified to think my son felt he was less than due to height and wouldn't want to reinforce that idea.

He is very substantially below average height for his age.

tomatoandherbs · 07/05/2022 10:56

PentaBike · 07/05/2022 09:59

I haven't RTFT. Can I please briefly piggy back on this thread (Apologies in advance OP) Flowers

What's going on with e.g. a girl who was always among the tallest until about year 5 but is now among the shortest in year 8? No period yet and very gradual signs of puberty (mainly hair growth and the beginnings of breast growth). At 13, is she just late to puberty? Is it likely she will grow before getting her period? Is this uncommon? I have tried to strata a thread on this but got no replies. Any helpful views?

13 is not late to start periods

is she close to 14 or just turned 13?

Oblomov22 · 07/05/2022 11:07

@NikiNooNa, I don't know what thread you are reading. If a man is small, they are small. End of. I'm really small and Dh isn't that big, but I always hoped ds's would be at least average size, which they are.

No one is berating being small. If the child is small, so be it. But there may be a medical issue. Might need monitoring, or a growth hormone. And at least if you do ask GP OP will find out if that is an option.

It's highly likely nothing can be done. But it would reassure me that I'd at least done everything I could.

Witchofthedales · 07/05/2022 11:10

My husband was like this at 15 then when he hit 16 he had a massive growth spurt and is now 6 ft.