Malnutrition and lack of exercise can hinder children's height growth, especially during puberty.
Infants and young children have continuous changes in bone structure. Children's height increases by 25 cm when they turn one year old. In the next 2 years, height increases by an average of 10 cm per year. From age 3 to puberty, children grow about 5-6 cm per year. About 2 years before puberty is the stage of rapid growth in height, about 8-12 cm. In the post-puberty stage, the rate of height increase slows down, increases very slowly and gradually reaches adult height.
Dr. Luong Thi Thu Hien - Department of Pediatrics, Tam Anh General Hospital, Hanoi, said that besides genetic factors, environmental factors also affect the limitation of children's height development such as: nutritional status and physical activities.
Nutritional Deficiency
According to Dr. Hien, nutrition plays an important role in the growth process. Malnourished children are often not as tall as children with adequate nutrition. An unbalanced diet prevents children from receiving enough protein, energy, vitamins and minerals necessary for development. In particular, protein and minerals (calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, ...) are especially important for bone health and development. Parents can supplement protein-rich foods such as red meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, dark green vegetables ... Some foods rich in calcium are milk, yogurt, cheese, broccoli, kale, soybeans, oranges ...
Lack of sleep
Dr. Duong Thuy Nga, Deputy Head of Pediatrics Department, Tam Anh General Hospital, Hanoi, shared that one of the common factors that hinder children's height growth is not getting enough sleep. Children often sleep late and wake up early. The two times when the body releases the most growth hormone, 5-7 times higher than during the day, are from 9pm to 2am the next morning and from 5am to 7am. Therefore, parents should put their children to bed before 9pm and wake them up after 7am.
Going to bed late and waking up early can negatively affect height growth and intellectual development. Not getting enough sleep over a long period of time can hinder growth, cause other health problems, and reduce a child's ability to concentrate, learn, and participate in activities in life.
Dr. Duong Thuy Nga examines a child at the Pediatrics Department, Tam Anh General Hospital, Hanoi. Photo: BVCC
Sedentary
Children often spend a lot of time studying in class, taking extra classes after school or playing games, watching TV, using phones... This greatly affects their time for playing and exercising. Exercising properly helps strengthen bones and muscle tissue.
Dr. Thuy Nga said that among the factors affecting height, exercise is the factor that stimulates the body to produce growth hormone (GH) most strongly. Studies show that if a child only plays sports or exercises in one session, the effect of increasing GH hormone will disappear immediately after 24 hours of exercise. However, if the child exercises regularly and moderately, the effect of producing height growth hormone will increase and remain stable for the next 24 hours. Therefore, children need to exercise at least 60 minutes a day.
Drug abuse
Children with congenital abnormalities or chronic diseases (kidney, liver, biliary, cardiovascular, etc.) often have slow growth. Some medications, when used for a long time, can affect a child's height. Before using any medication, parents should consult a doctor for appropriate use and avoid drug abuse.
Congenital genetic disorders
Congenital genetic abnormalities (chromosomes, genes) can cause children to grow slowly. Some rare genetic diseases that have a particularly serious impact on a child's height include: congenital osteochondrodysplasia (caused by mutations in the FGFR3 gene). Turner syndrome is caused by a missing or abnormal X chromosome, causing the child to be short and have delayed puberty.
Hormones and endocrine disorders
Dr. Hien shared that hormones play an important role in regulating body development. Growth includes hormones produced by the pituitary gland (GH), thyroid hormones, sex hormones (testosterone and estrogen)... Abnormalities of these hormones all change development and increase height. Hormonal imbalances such as lack of growth hormone or thyroid hormone make children shorter than expected if not treated.
Although a child's height is largely predetermined by DNA, the lifestyle and care of parents have a great influence. In addition to providing adequate nutrition, getting enough sleep, and exercising regularly, parents should take their children for regular check-ups to help determine their health status. From there, the doctor will provide treatment methods to avoid affecting the child's height development.
Emerald
At 8:00 p.m. on June 27, Tam Anh General Hospital System organized an online consultation program "Increasing height for children - Detecting and treating endocrine and genetic diseases in children", broadcast on the VnExpress fanpage. The program helps parents update information on factors and diseases affecting height development and effective treatment methods.
Participating doctors include: MD.CKII Duong Thuy Nga, Deputy Head of Pediatrics Department, Tam Anh General Hospital Hanoi; Dr. Luong Thi Thu Hien, Tam Anh General Hospital Hanoi and Dr. Hoang Thi Diem Thuy, Tam Anh General Hospital Ho Chi Minh City. Readers send questions here.
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