When Do Boys Stop Growing? Median Height, Genetics & More

early maturers, starting puberty around the age 11 or 12 years old; late maturers, starting puberty ... On average, boys also tend to be taller than girls. HealthConditionsDiscoverPlanConnectShopSubscribeWhenDoBoysStopGrowing?MedicallyreviewedbyAlanaBiggers,M.D.,MPH—WrittenbyChaunieBrusie—UpdatedonMarch7,2019GrowthandpubertyMedianheightHeightandgeneticsBoysvs.girlsGrowthdelaysTakeawayDoboysgrowintheirlaterteenyears?Boysseemtogrowatincrediblerates,whichmaymakeanyparentwonder:Whendoboysstopgrowing?AccordingtotheNationalHealthService(NHS),mostboyscompletetheirgrowthbythetimethey’re16yearsold.Someboysmaycontinuetogrowanotherinchorsointheirlaterteenyears.Keepreadingtolearnmoreaboutgrowthinboysandwhattoexpect.Howdoespubertyaffectgrowth?Boysgothroughagrowthspurtduringpuberty.However,theratesofgrowthcanvaryalotbecauseboysgothroughpubertyatdifferentages.Onaverage,boystendtogrowaround3inches(or7.6centimeters)peryearduringthisperiod.Theageofaboywhenhegoesthroughpubertydoesn’taffecthowtallhe’lleventuallybe,butit’llaffectwhenhisgrowthstartsandstops.Boystendtofallintotwocategories:earlymaturers,startingpubertyaroundtheage11or12yearsoldlatematurers,startingpubertyaroundtheage13or14yearsoldBothcategoriesusuallygainthesameaverageamountofinchesinheight,butthelatematurerstendtogrowatafasterratetomakeupforlosttime.Duringpuberty,thepeakheightthatboysreachis92percentoftheiradultheight.Boyswhohavegrowthrestrictionsbeforetheystartpubertystillgainthesameaverageamountofinchesinheightduringpuberty.Theyneverquitemakeupforanydeficitsfrombeforepuberty.What’sthemedianheightforboys?ForAmericanmen20yearsoldandup,theaverageage-adjustedheightis69.1inches(175.4cm),orjustover5feet9inchestall.HeightbyageAt10yearsold,theearlieststartofpuberty,halfofallboyswillbeunder54.5inches(138.5cm).ThemedianheightslistedbelowaretakenfromaCDCchartfrom2000:Age(years)50thpercentileheightforboys(inchesandcentimeters)850.4in.(128cm)952.6in.(133.5cm)1054.5in.(138.5cm)1156.4in.(143.5cm)1258.7in.(149cm)1361.4in.(156cm)1464.6in.(164cm)1566.9in.(170cm)1668.3in.(173.5cm)1769.1in.(175.5cm)1869.3in.(176cm)Whatroledogeneticsplayinheight?Genesfrombothparentsplayaroleindeterminingheightandgrowthforbothboysandgirls.Otherfactorssuchasdiet,activitylevel,andthemother’snutritionduringpregnancyalsoaffectheight.Themid-parentalmethodisonewayofpredictinghowtallachildwillbe.Inthismethod,youadduptheheightsoftheparents(ininches),andthendividethenumberby2.Add2.5inchestothisnumbertogetthepredictedheightforaboy.Subtract2.5inchesfromthisnumbertogetthepredictedheightforagirl.Forexample,takeaboywithafatherwho’s70inchestallandamotherwho’s62inchestall.70+62=132132/2=6666+2.5=68.5Theboy’spredictedheightwouldbe68.5inches,or5feet8.5inchestall.Thisisn’texact,however.Childrenmayendupasmuchasfourinchestallerorshorterthantheheightpredictedbythismethod.Doboysgrowatadifferentspeedthangirls?Boysandgirlsgrowdifferently.Boystendtogrowatafasterrateduringchildhood.Onaverage,boysalsotendtobetallerthangirls.That’swhydoctorsuseseparategrowthchartsforboysandgirlstomeasuregrowthovertime.Thepercentileyourchildfallsintoisn’tasimportantasconsistency.Ifyourchilddropsfromthe40thpercentiletothe20th,forinstance,theirdoctormayrecommendteststodetermineanunderlyingcause.Whatcausesgrowthdelays?Therearemanypossiblecausesofgrowthdelays,including:medicalconditionsthataffectthethyroidgrowthhormonesinsulinlevelssexhormonesDownsyndromeandothergeneticdisordersBoyswhoareoverweightandobesetendtohavelowergrowthrates.Malnutritionduringchildhoodcouldalsodelaygrowth.Growthdelaysmaybemostnoticeableduringinfanthood,whichiswhyit’simportanttokeeponschedulewithwell-childvisits.Ateachvisit,yourchild’spediatricianwilltrackgrowth.Thatallowsthedoctortodetectaproblemrightaway.What’sthetakeaway?Ingeneral,boystendtostopgrowingaroundtheageof16.Manyfactorscanaffectgrowthand,ultimately,height.Theseincludeenvironmentalfactorsaswellasnutritionandphysicalactivitylevels.Ifyou’reconcernedaboutpossiblegrowthdelays,contactyourchild’sdoctor.LastmedicallyreviewedonMarch7,20195sourcescollapsedHealthlinehasstrictsourcingguidelinesandreliesonpeer-reviewedstudies,academicresearchinstitutions,andmedicalassociations.Weavoidusingtertiaryreferences.Youcanlearnmoreabouthowweensureourcontentisaccurateandcurrentbyreadingoureditorialpolicy.2to20years:Boysstature-for-ageandweight-for-agepercentiles.(2000). cdc.gov/growthcharts/data/set1clinical/cj41c021.pdfFryerCD,etal.(2018).Meanbodyweight,height,waistcircumference,andbodymassindexamongadults:UnitedStates,1999–2000through2015–2016.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhsr/nhsr122-508.pdfSolimanA,etal.(2014).Advancesinpubertalgrowthandfactorsinfluencingit:Canweincreasepubertalgrowth?DOI:10.4103/2230-8210.145075Stagesofpuberty:Whathappenstoboysandgirls.(2018).nhs.uk/live-well/sexual-health/stages-of-puberty-what-happens-to-boys-and-girls/WeintraubB.(2011).Growth.pedsinreview.aappublications.org/content/32/9/404FEEDBACK:MedicallyreviewedbyAlanaBiggers,M.D.,MPH—WrittenbyChaunieBrusie—UpdatedonMarch7,2019ReadthisnextTheAverageHeightsofMenAroundtheWorldMedicallyreviewedbyKevinMartinez,M.D.Humanscomeinavarietyofshapesandsizes.SeehowtheaverageheightformenintheUnitedStatescomparesworldwide.READMOREIsI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