Have you ever felt that you are taller when you wake up after a sound sleep? If yes, just quickly look down. If there is no accident, your quilt is covered horizontally.
Height is what many people care about. Everyone has his own ideal height, but it is often unsatisfactory in the reality.
So, what are the factors affecting height? Can we grow tall after adulthood? Let’s read more.
What are the stages of growing tall?
Height is related to the length of long bones
The long bone includes the tibia of the lower leg and the femur of the thigh. The lengthening of the long bone is mainly completed by the continuous growth and ossification of the epiphyseal plate cartilage. The epiphyseal plate is like a long “engine”. The continuous proliferation of epiphyseal plate cartilage leads to the lengthening of long bone and the continuous increase of height. Until the epiphyseal plate is closed, the “engine” stops working and the height stops growing.
Height growth can be divided into three stages:
The first stage: the period of rapid bone development, within 2 years of age, the whole body bones gradually grow, and the height grows faster;
The second stage: the period of skeletal development slowdown. Boys are between 2 and 12 years old, and girls are between 2 and 10 years old. The normal growth rate is about 5cm-7cm per year, and the growth rate tends to be stable;
The third stage: accelerated bone development. In puberty, boys are between 12 and 16 years old, and girls between 10 and 15 years old, their height can increase by about 25cm-30cm.
After puberty, the bones are basically fully developed and the height tends to be stable. Generally boys are 22 years old, and girls after 20 years old, their height basically stops growing.
What are the factors that determine height?
The factors that determine height can be divided into uncontrollable factors and controllable factors
Uncontrollable factors: genetic factors. Some scholars use the height of parents to propose a formula to predict the height of the next generation in adulthood:
The boy’s adult height = (father’s height + mother’s height)/2×1.08
Girl’s adult height = (father’s height×0.923+mother’s height)/2
Controllable factors: environmental factors. The environment determines the development of growth potential, including nutrition level, exercise status, sleep and so on.
Bone is mainly composed of organic matter such as collagen and inorganic matter such as calcium and phosphorus. Adequate protein, minerals, etc. can provide sufficient “nutrients” for the growth and development of bones, and lay a solid foundation for height increase. The growth of bones also requires a certain degree of mechanical stimulation. Through appropriate exercise, the bones can “feel” the mechanical stimulation, thereby promoting the growth of bones.
Adequate and regular sleep can secrete sufficient growth hormone, and growth hormone is an important factor in promoting the growth of epiphyseal cartilage.
It can be seen that innate genetic factors and acquired environmental factors jointly determine a person’s height.
We cannot change genetic factors. What can be changed are controllable environmental factors.
For children, it is necessary to maintain adequate nutrition, especially to supplement protein-rich foods, drink more milk, supplement adequate amounts of calcium, and get more sun to promote the production of vitamin D, which in turn promotes the absorption of calcium. Appropriately participate in sports that stimulate the bones, such as rope skipping, high jump, long jump, and running. In addition, you must maintain adequate and regular sleep.
Can we really grow taller in adulthood?
Theoretically speaking, whether a person is long or not depends on whether the epiphyseal plate is closed. For most people, the epiphyseal plate closes after adolescence and the height tends to be stable. But for a very small number of people, the epiphyseal plate may be closed late, so even if they are adults, they can still grow taller.
Some people say that the height of a woman can go up again after giving birth. This situation can be said to be met but not desired. If it happens that the epiphyseal plate of the pregnant woman has not closed, and there is hormone stimulation in the pregnant woman’s body, it is possible to grow taller. of. Some pregnant women may experience stretching and deformation of the spine due to weight gain and increased load. The original S-shaped spine may be pulled into an I-shape, which looks a little longer.
So, is there any way for adults to grow up?
Osteotomy, also called bone lengthening, is a surgical method used in medicine to increase the height. After osteotomy of the long bones, external fixation instruments are used to fix and gradually extend the limbs to achieve the purpose of height increase.
However, this method is limited to patients with bone defects or limb unequal length caused by congenital deformities, trauma, tumors, infections, etc., and limb deformities caused by diseases. Normal people should never use this invasive Ways to realize the dream of heightening.
Of course, adults can correct their bad postures, adjust their sitting and standing postures to keep the spine in a normal physiological arc, avoid hunchback, shoulder inequality, and stretch the iliopsoas muscles, erector spinae, and exercise buttocks. Large muscles and abdominal muscles, etc., to maximize height, and ultimately achieve the effect of heightening.
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