The Tall and Short of It: What you Should Know about Your Child’s Growth

When children are born, they come in all kinds of shape: short, tall, pencil thin or round. All these children want to fit in with their peers and be loved for who they are. However, when your child is dwarfed by others of the same age, fitting in is often a huge challenge.

Often some kids tease others because of the shape of the nose, weight, having corrective glasses or even stature. Unfortunately, most people make a lot of judgment about a child based on what they can see.

Measuring UP

Fixation on height begins the moment your child is born. In fact, everyone around the child is concerned about weight and height statistics. From that point onwards, his pediatrician will take some measurements during every hospital visit.

Although pounds and inches are all important, development is also key. The doctor will use growth charts to compare your child’s growth to that of kids of the same gender and age. You won’t have to worry as long as your child is showing normal growth

However, if the doctor determines that the child might not reach the right height for his age, he might recommend growth hormone deficiency treatment.

Over the first year, kids reach a length of 10 inches. However, that won’t tell you much about his adult weight or height. With time, he may pack up some 5 inches during his second year, and then once he reaches age 3, he will put on 2.5 inches per year until his last growth spurt in puberty.

Girls tend to achieve adult height round about age 15, while boys bloom at around age 17. So, if your child doesn’t top the 5th percentile, he may be classified as having short stature, a term implying that he is shorter than most kids his age. Such kids often endure several years of bullying, so parent often prefers to have them undergo growth hormone deficiency treatment.

A child who falls under the 95th percentile is considered slightly taller than most of the peers. Typical height is usually between 40th and the 60th percentile.

Short Stuff

Generally, the assumption is that short boys are as popular when compared to their tall peers. In addition, short kids are often bullied, teased and end up being depressed because of their height. Parent often don’t have a choice but to seek help from growth experts, who often recommend growth hormone deficiency treatment.

Although research findings on growth challenges for kids have brought impressive results, it’s still quite tough to be short, especially for boys. Society finds it okay for a girl to be short. Consequently, most of the parents who are wondering how to help kids grow taller are those with boys.

Height Anxiety

Tall children might seem to have it easy, but being tall comes with a downside. For one, taller children appear much older than they really are, so their friends and adult expect them to act maturely.

Life is never a slam-dunk when a child is tall. Most adults expect taller kids to be good in one sport or another, which is not always true. A child who has to respond continuously to inquiries regarding his sporting prowess can become very stressed. Add that on top of being singled out because of height and its make life very unbearable.

That’s not all. Tall children also experience a lot of bullying. If a child is 7 but looks 11, other older kids tend to challenge him. Mostly, older kids want to find out if he is as tough as they are.

That said, some taller kids often take advantage of their height to make life difficult for others. Finding a tall kind throwing his weight around is common. In fact, research has shown that kids who are taller by a half inch at age 3 tend to be aggressive by the time they reach age 12.

Such boys or girls have a high level of testosterone. It could also be that they learn early enough that they can force their way around the thing they need.

Treatment for Short Children

Close to one in every 3500 kids has a growth hormone deficiency. That means such children are not able to secrete enough growth hormone to encourage healthy growth. Doctors often recommend growth hormone deficiency treatment so that a child can attain a height close to the ideal height.

Final Word

Raising a child involves many dynamics. Not all kids end up with the right height for their age. Male kids who are short often have it rough because they encounter a lot of bullying from their peers. Taller kids also encounter some form of bullying, but in some instance, they bully other kids. As a parent, your role is to understand what your child is going through and try to provide emotional support. You could also consider growth hormone therapy to encourage some growth in your child.

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