Do some boys skip the growth spurt?

[Anonymous]

My DS is extremely tall at 12 and I'm wondering if he is going to have a big growth spurt as he goes through puberty or if he is just going to continue his steady increase in height. He has been growing about 3 inches a year since 2nd grade but no spurt linked to puberty. He is showing signs of puberty (voice cracking, less baby fat and more muscle, pubic hair, acne) but I don't think he is fully through because he has no arm pit or facial hair. (I haven't looked at his genitals so i have no idea what's going on in that respect). Both parents are in 95-99% percentile for height so it isn't surprising. I don't think that he will stop growing completely but if he keeps on this trajectory he will be 6'9" by the time he hits high school (yes he plays basketball)

Just curious more than anything but I also will need to adjust my budget to keep him in special order shoes if he spurts up .

I would really love a growth x-ray but I don't think that it could be justified.

[Anonymous]

I have a very tall almost 20 year old son. 6-7

Mine was done growing taller by 16. Most boys are done in height by 16. (Yes there are outliers if the kid is later to puberty.) Mine didn’t have some big dramatic spurt. It was just slow and steady and constant growing. Grew about 9 inches between 12 and 16.

The puberty signs you are describing you likely have several years of puberty left.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a very tall almost 20 year old son. 6-7

Mine was done growing taller by 16. Most boys are done in height by 16. (Yes there are outliers if the kid is later to puberty.) Mine didn’t have some big dramatic spurt. It was just slow and steady and constant growing. Grew about 9 inches between 12 and 16.

The puberty signs you are describing you likely have several years of puberty left.

Also should add the feet stopped growing larger well before height growth ended (at some point in middle school can’t remember) and 15-16 for him was definitely slowed height growth. An inch the last year.

[Anonymous]

It’s not going to be 3 consistent inches per year, every year, through the teen years. That’s the only thing we can tell you for sure. Don’t waste any time thinking over this. One of mine stopped growing before 16 and maybe even by 15. We aren’t completely positive our other is done at 17 but is done with any massive growth.

Everyone is different.

[Anonymous]

And adding to above, my 6’1 kid wears a size 14 shoe and is done growing so you can’t even tell about height and shoes. He’s tall but not that tall to have feet that big. We just order them online. I know you were joking about the shoes and special budget.

[Anonymous]

Has your kid's voice dropped significantly? That was a big sign for both of my boys that the puberty growth spurt was coming.

I highly doubt that your kid will top out at 12. You have until at least 15 and even that sounds early.

[Anonymous]

Also -- armpit hair didn't seem to be a good indicator for either of my boys. One of them had about 4 armpit hairs until he was 19! (He has about 50 now. It is a family joke) Other kid has more armpit hair at 15 but not a ton.

Oldest kid is 6'2. He grew an inch in college.
Younger one grew 4 inches last year at 14 and is still growing. Currently 5'10.

[Anonymous]

Our kid, 6 feet tall, stopped growing in MS

[Anonymous]

Mine didn't really have a growth spurt. He's 5'7 and probably done but I'm still hoping for a college growth spurt.

[Anonymous]

Mine was always tall (but not the way it sounds like your son is) and he basically grew slow and steady- probably about 3" yearly. Some years he was definitely noticeably taller than his peers, while other years, things seemed more commensurate- probably when the others were going through their own growth spurts. He definitely didn't have any dramatic spurts like some do.

FWIW, he is 15 and 6'2" with a size 10.5-11 shoe size. His father is 6'1" and has a 9.5-10 shoe size. Body/facial hair isn't a good indicator for him as he's half-Asian, so guessing he'll be less hairy in general. I'm thinking he's probably getting close to done.

[Anonymous]

My kid was steady for years. Paused at age 12 for 6 months with no growth. Then 3-4” per year for two years.

Now he is 15.5 yrs old and just shy of 6’4” but seriously slow growing now. Hoping for one more inch for sport, but at this point we only measure every 6 months or so bc I don’t want him to be neurotic about something he can’t meaningfully control.

We have highlighted to him that getting great sleep, eating plenty of protein and complex carbs, and avoiding crap food helps. Might as well harness the height motivation to make a few healthy choices?

[Anonymous]

The voice starting to change probably means he is further into puberty than you think and he is an early bloomer. 3 inches per year is considered a spurt. He will probably be done growing in height fairly soon. Also, hair is really not an indicator. One of my boys had peach fuzz on his upper lip and a few armpit hairs before any other change I could see (definitely before height spurt and well before voice changes). The voice change in males has been compared to the same type of milestone as starting the period for females - it happens in later puberty and growth is starting to slow.

Although it is earlier than average, there are definitely boys who stop growing in height at 13-14, especially if their voice has already deepened.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The voice starting to change probably means he is further into puberty than you think and he is an early bloomer. 3 inches per year is considered a spurt. He will probably be done growing in height fairly soon. Also, hair is really not an indicator. One of my boys had peach fuzz on his upper lip and a few armpit hairs before any other change I could see (definitely before height spurt and well before voice changes). The voice change in males has been compared to the same type of milestone as starting the period for females - it happens in later puberty and growth is starting to slow.

Although it is earlier than average, there are definitely boys who stop growing in height at 13-14, especially if their voice has already deepened.

My always tallish kid usually grew 2.5 or 3 inches a year all through childhood. His growth spurt was 5 inches in one year, 4 the next year. He's 6'3 now at 14.5.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The voice starting to change probably means he is further into puberty than you think and he is an early bloomer. 3 inches per year is considered a spurt. He will probably be done growing in height fairly soon. Also, hair is really not an indicator. One of my boys had peach fuzz on his upper lip and a few armpit hairs before any other change I could see (definitely before height spurt and well before voice changes). The voice change in males has been compared to the same type of milestone as starting the period for females - it happens in later puberty and growth is starting to slow.

Although it is earlier than average, there are definitely boys who stop growing in height at 13-14, especially if their voice has already deepened.

My always tallish kid usually grew 2.5 or 3 inches a year all through childhood. His growth spurt was 5 inches in one year, 4 the next year. He's 6'3 now at 14.5.

Ok

[Anonymous]

Really, you want a growth x-ray for your extremely tall child who has two extremely tall parents? Why would you be the least bit surprised he will be tall? Yeah, sometimes very tall people need special shoes etc. I’m sure you will survive.

To answer your question, yes - some boys do not have a growth spurt but just grow steadily. Especially if they are early developers, which your son definitely is with that many signs of puberty at 12. Also, armpit hair really has no timeline. My 22 year old still jokes about how he has almost none, while my 18 year old developed armpit hair in 5th grade and didn’t grow until 9th.