Almost 15 DS hasn't really had a growth spurt (?)

[Anonymous]

OP, check out the Tanner phases of puberty. 15 is on the later side for puberty to begin. After 14, it’s considered delayed puberty but most delayed puberty is just due to genetics.

Talk to your pediatrician if you’re really concerned. They can do some tests to check for any hormonal or other physiological issues.

This is also a good article on puberty and growth:

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/stages-of-puberty-for-boys

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/puberty

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The cdc growth curves are so nice and smooth and easy to fixate on, but in truth, no individual grows according to a smooth curve. There are spikes and plateaus. The only thing you can be sure of is that their height won’t decrease during adolescence.

I have a 16 year old who only grew an inch from 15-16 and now suddenly grew 2 inches within a 6 week span at 16.5. I do have a theory that they tend to grow when they are receiving adequate sleep. At least, mine always seem to sprout when they are on holiday breaks.

YES!! Mine grew in the summer and then grew again at Christmas break!

[Anonymous]

Have a pediatrician order a bone age scan and tell you what Tanner Stage he is in.

If his bone age is close to his chronological age, he is stage 3 or above in Tanner, AND he has dropped on the growth percentiles (he used to be 80th percentile and he's been dropping over the last few years and now he's 40th percentile, for example) - then go see an endocrinologist.

[Anonymous]

I know some kids who were 5'5 freshmen yr then were over 6'0 as juniors. He'll be fine.

[Anonymous]

Do you not see any other signs of puberty? Does he have armpit hair? What size are his feet? How much has he grown in a year? Most boys grow 9-15 inches during puberty so I’d assume he’s somewhere in the middle of it.

[Anonymous]

Check celiac disease

[Anonymous]

My DS was 5’7” at 14 & a year later had only grown a fraction of an inch. Doc was not concerned.

[Anonymous]

My son also grew very late (sophomore/junior year or HS) and is almost 6’5” and just turned 18. Parents are 5’6” and 6’2.” He started out sophomore year at 5’10” or so.

[Anonymous]

You would be able to tell if he’s going through puberty. If he hasn’t yet, then he will be really tall. My guess is that he’s at the beginning of puberty because almost every boy grows more than 2 inches a year during their growth spurt. If he doesn’t have Adam’s Apple/armpit hair, I’d assume your son is going to be at a minimum his dads height but most likely taller than him.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You would be able to tell if he’s going through puberty. If he hasn’t yet, then he will be really tall. My guess is that he’s at the beginning of puberty because almost every boy grows more than 2 inches a year during their growth spurt. If he doesn’t have Adam’s Apple/armpit hair, I’d assume your son is going to be at a minimum his dads height but most likely taller than him.

this is not true. Body hair and other outward signs of puberty are adrenarche and not true puberty. Certain ethnicities and people develop hair and other outward signs of puberty earlier or later than others. The only way to judge true puberty, as it relates to growth spurts and height, is measuring the testicles. Which is why a doctor needs to do it.

For example my son is under the care of an endocrinologist, and he is now in Tanner Stage 4. However, I would not have guessed that by looking at him. He has absolutely no facial hair, literally four or five hairs in each armpit, and no dark leg hair. But the endocrinologist measures and can tell us he is in Stage 4. The biggest growth spurt occurs in Stage3/4, and once boys get to Stage 5 their growth is basically done.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You would be able to tell if he’s going through puberty. If he hasn’t yet, then he will be really tall. My guess is that he’s at the beginning of puberty because almost every boy grows more than 2 inches a year during their growth spurt. If he doesn’t have Adam’s Apple/armpit hair, I’d assume your son is going to be at a minimum his dads height but most likely taller than him.

This is quite a load of nonsense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:He'll be 15 in June. He's 5'6 or a little shy, which is only 2 inches taller than a year ago. Wondering if he's going to be really short, or has he not had a growth spurt yet? Is this normal? Not sure what's usual for a 14-15 year old boy. (He has a couple of friends who are 6 feet tall!)
Dad is 6'1 and I'm 5'6, so I assumed my kids would be tall-ish, though obviously you can't be sure.

Ask your doctor

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You would be able to tell if he’s going through puberty. If he hasn’t yet, then he will be really tall. My guess is that he’s at the beginning of puberty because almost every boy grows more than 2 inches a year during their growth spurt. If he doesn’t have Adam’s Apple/armpit hair, I’d assume your son is going to be at a minimum his dads height but most likely taller than him.

this is not true. Body hair and other outward signs of puberty are adrenarche and not true puberty. Certain ethnicities and people develop hair and other outward signs of puberty earlier or later than others. The only way to judge true puberty, as it relates to growth spurts and height, is measuring the testicles. Which is why a doctor needs to do it.

For example my son is under the care of an endocrinologist, and he is now in Tanner Stage 4. However, I would not have guessed that by looking at him. He has absolutely no facial hair, literally four or five hairs in each armpit, and no dark leg hair. But the endocrinologist measures and can tell us he is in Stage 4. The biggest growth spurt occurs in Stage3/4, and once boys get to Stage 5 their growth is basically done.

This

[Anonymous]

Without going to an endo, how would you know what stage a boy is in? My 13 yo is 4’11” with above average height parents!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does he seem like a late bloomer (based on what you can tell, or what the ped has said?)

If so, the growth is probably coming. My DS was 5’6”-5’7” on his 15th birthday, 5’11” on his 16th birthday a few months ago. Measured 6’0” at a sports physical a few weeks ago and still seems to be growing. DH and I are 6’0” and 5’6”.

Some just bloom on the later side.

His birthday is June, so we haven't seen the ped for a while. He doesn't have any hint of facial or body hair that I can see (eg above the waist). He has sort of a husky voice and I can't tell if it's dropped. So I guess it might be delayed puberty? Would they recommend hormone treatment? A friend of mine (who has a 6 foot just turned 15 year old) asked me if I was considering growth hormones.

2" per year is not abnormal. My now almost 6' DS at 19 was barely over 5' at 14. He grew 2" per year on average. Late bloomer. He grew passed his friends who mostly stopped at 16.

If your DS is a late bloomer, don't do hormones. There is no need.