Last updated on January 27, 2023
Question:
Hello,
I have a question. My dad is 177 cm. My mom is 168 cm. I’m 16 and I am 174 cm. My brother is 21 and he is 176-177 cm. My brother had a growth spurt when he was 15-16 years old, so it was late. But when I was 12-13 years old, I had a growth spurt. So we have different growth ages and growth genes. According to my mother, I was heavier and taller when I was born. My question is: Can I be taller than my brother, like 180-185 cm? My grandfather was 190.
Answer:
Unfortunately, I can’t answer your question because I don’t know what stage of development you are currently in. If you had your growth spurt at age 13, then by 16 you would likely be in late stage 4 or even into stage 5. If that is so, then you will not be growing much more. Your brother ended up taller because he was taller when he had his growth spurt (since it happened later).
Question:
But 3 or 4 months after I turned 16, I grew about 3 cm. Isn’t that a sign that I’m still taller? Do you think there is any hope? I was under a lot of stress, especially when I was 15, maybe that’s why my extension at that age was delayed. My Tanner stage result is 3.9-4.0.
Answer:
If your estimate is accurate, then you will probably grow another 3 to 8 cm. Some boys do spend a longer time in stage 3 than other boys so it is possible that you are at the start of stage 4. I can’t verify your estimate since I can’t see you, so I am only able to give comments based on what you mention.
Question:
I want to ask one more thing. Could my puberty at the age of 15 have stopped for a moment? I barely grew taller at the age of 15, but after 16 I grew 3-4 cm and I feel my growth is still going on. Can puberty stop at a certain age and then start again? Is there a scientific explanation for this? Even though I did it many times in my Tanner Stage result, it saw a maximum of 4.1. I feel like my growing-up age is 15, not 16 anymore. It’s like my 15-year-old growth was delayed. I hope I turn 180.
I also have more information: I think my legs are longer than my body and half of my body corresponds to the head of my penis, but I am not sure. Maybe it looks like my body is finally getting longer.
Answer:
It is common for the body to pause your growth in height as it works on developing your internal organs to match your larger size. You have a limited pool of energy to devote to growth, so your body switches areas of the body to work on.
Your half-height is not based on a feeling. You measure your total height, divide the value in half, then measure from the floor up to half your height and see where the halfway point comes on your body.
Question:
I measured it and it comes just under my penis, at the point of the thigh, where the penis and the leg meet. Can we draw any conclusions from this? By the way, thank you for your answers.
Answer:
Your half-height would place you at the end of stage 3 or the beginning of stage 4, which matches the estimate the Tanner Stage Calculator gave you.
Question:
How is the growth of these internal organs? I’ve never seen anything like it in my peers, is it because of my genes? I think it’s because my torso is starting to get longer. Hopefully, I’ll be 180 or higher.
Answer:
You cannot see the growth of your heart, liver, lungs, and intestines since these are inside your body and inside the bodies of your friends. Even though you cannot see them, they are still growing to match the size of your larger body.
Question:
No, not in that sense. I’ve never seen anyone grow taller and suddenly stop and then continue again.
Answer:
I hope you realize that personal observations do not constitute proof that something is true. The problem is that we don’t notice everything and what we observe is limited. The reason height measurements are compared to a half-year or year past is to span these pauses.
Question:
Ok, I looked at https://wwwapps.usask.ca/kin-growthutility/phv_ui.php and it shows my peak age as 15. I guess it goes up to 16 because I never grew up at 15. My heights:
- 12 – 145 cm
- 13 – 155 cm
- 14 – 164 cm
- 15 – 170 cm
- I never grew from 15 to 16
- 16 – 173-174 cm
Answer:
The Peak Height Velocity tool is just a way of predicting when a person is growing the fastest. You don’t need a predictive tool as your measurements show your growth.
You grew the fastest between ages 12 and 14, which would correspond to stage 3 of development. From ages 15 to 16 you have been slowing down, which corresponds to stage 4 of development. This would mean your estimate is off because it should show that you are in late stage 4. Based on your measurements, you might grow another few centimeters, but it doesn’t look like you’ll reach 180 cm.