Are growth spurts sometimes a cause for concern?

[MBM]

I recently measured my almost 13-year-old son and noticed that in the span of one year, he has grown 5" taller. His dad was the smallest in his class and then had a sudden growth spurt when he was about 15 or so, so maybe he's growing like his dad did. Ds seems healthy, but is this ever a cause for concern?

 

TIA!

[elise1mds]

My DH says no :) He was somewhere around 5'9" or 5'10" and hit a growth spurt that lasted two years. He wound up at 6'8". It caused him all sorts of issues and included a diagnosis of chronic fatigue because he was just growing SO fast that he couldn't get enough calories or sleep to keep up. He was literally eating and sleeping 24/7. So he says if your son is eating well, getting enough sleep, and not complaining too much about growing pains that you're doing fine!

[Starr]

We've seen many a young man see 5 inches in a year. You would know if he's not healthy.

[Jennifer in MI]

My DH says no :) He was somewhere around 5'9" or 5'10" and hit a growth spurt that lasted two years. He wound up at 6'8". It caused him all sorts of issues and included a diagnosis of chronic fatigue because he was just growing SO fast that he couldn't get enough calories or sleep to keep up. He was literally eating and sleeping 24/7. So he says if your son is eating well, getting enough sleep, and not complaining too much about growing pains that you're doing fine!

 

I wish I had one of these growth spurts!!!

[BikeBookBread]

My Mom tells me often how her brother, my uncle, grew 6" one summer. He would sit down at the table with a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter and a gallon of milk. And consume them all in one sitting! He went from being called "shrimp" to the star of the basketball team.

[MBM]

he couldn't get enough calories or sleep to keep up. He was literally eating and sleeping 24/7.

 

Oh, why can't I have this problem of never getting enough calories. :D Ds is definitely entering the big appetite stage.

 

Thanks, Elise!

[MBM]

My Mom tells me often how her brother, my uncle, grew 6" one summer. He would sit down at the table with a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter and a gallon of milk. And consume them all in one sitting! He went from being called "shrimp" to the star of the basketball team.

 

Oh my word -- 6" in one summer! I'm on the short side, so I'd have been happy to grow just an inch in a summer.

[BikeBookBread]

Oh my word -- 6" in one summer! I'm on the short side, so I'd have been happy to grow just an inch in a summer.

 

He just turned 80 this year (my parents are OLD), and is still 6' 5". He continued to grow at a slower pace after that amazing growth spurt. His Dad (my Grandpa) was at least 6' 5" as well, and I think his uncle (my great uncle) was very tall, too.

[Mrs Mungo]

My eldest was 2 stanines below the growth curve until she was 12. At 14 she is now at the 50th percentile for height at 5'4" (3 inches taller than I am). My other two are still small. Hopefully, they will catch up too!

[Leanna Tomlinson]

My 15yo is 6'5". He grew 9 inches in 2 years. The amount of food he eats is amazing and he's still only 170 lbs.!

 

The only thing the Dr. said is that I'm to take it seriously if he has knee pain. Ds is very into sports and the Dr. warned that he could really hurt himself if he ignores his body and exercises with pain. I noticed blood on his sports socks before he realized his shoes had grown too small in the space of 5 weeks!

[Renee in NC]

My oldest was 5'0" in May when he turned 11 and 5'8" by that fall! It was insane how fast he changed - his voice changed in two weeks from little boy to man (no squeaking.) He's 16 now and looks 20.

[MBM]

Thanks, ladies! I can see I'm going to have to buy more cereal.

 

Ds recently began shaving the few invisible whiskers he claims he has. We can always tell by the numerous cuts where a mustache would technically be. His voice changed this year as well. I don't think I'm ready for him to grow up just yet. :001_unsure:

[Mommyof4ks]

When my dd was 2 she literally out grew her footed pjs overnight. We put her to bed in pjs thinking she was getting sick because she had been whiny all day. When she woke up the next morning she was squished up in her pjs! She has bad growing pains because she grows overnight like that. Her pedi says all kids are different in their growth, and fast growth is not a cause for concern other than we need to make sure she is getting enough calcium and vit d.

[dansamy]

My oldest has put on 2.5" recently. He's 10.5 and I think this summer I can expect a big growth spurt out of him.

[asta]

My 15yo is 6'5". He grew 9 inches in 2 years. The amount of food he eats is amazing and he's still only 170 lbs.!

 

The only thing the Dr. said is that I'm to take it seriously if he has knee pain. Ds is very into sports and the Dr. warned that he could really hurt himself if he ignores his body and exercises with pain. I noticed blood on his sports socks before he realized his shoes had grown too small in the space of 5 weeks!

 

My DS ended up having to quit soccer for 2 years because of "marrow swelling" in his shins and ankles that (finally) was attributed to his fantastical growth between 12-14.

 

He wanted to play so badly those years, he wasn't telling us how badly he was hurting. And yes, he had the bloody socks, the swollen legs, and now has periodic knee problems (he is trying to get back into it, slowly).

 

Personally, I think that kids who shoot up very quickly *do* have more challenges then those who don't.

 

 

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[Heidi7Sue]

I think I grew that fast for a while. My brother grew faster.:ohmy:

[natalie]

Ds12 has grown an inch a month for the 8 months. He was 5'0" at the beginning of October. He is currently 5'8" and shows no signs of slowing down. He sleeps a little more than before, but other than that he's doing great.

 

He has this deep booming voice that appeared overnight (never had any squeaking going on). He's starting to get a bunch of hair above his lips too, and I have no idea how we'll deal with that ... he has fine motor skill problems and just learned to tie his shows last year!

[Leanna Tomlinson]

My DS ended up having to quit soccer for 2 years because of "marrow swelling" in his shins and ankles that (finally) was attributed to his fantastical growth between 12-14.

 

He wanted to play so badly those years, he wasn't telling us how badly he was hurting. And yes, he had the bloody socks, the swollen legs, and now has periodic knee problems (he is trying to get back into it, slowly).

 

Personally, I think that kids who shoot up very quickly *do* have more challenges then those who don't.

 

 

a

 

Thank you asta. I'm going to show your post to my ds. His coach told him to stop trying to dunk the basketball, but he doesn't take the warnings seriously.

[AngelaNYC]

Totally normal. My dd was 4'9" when she was almost 12. Now she's 13 and 5'5". I'm pretty sure boys grow at an even faster rate. They're usually shorter than the girls up to high school and then somewhere at around 14-15 they shoot up like a weed. That's puberty for you. :D

[Julie in CA]

Thanks, ladies! I can see I'm going to have to buy more cereal.

 

Ds recently began shaving the few invisible whiskers he claims he has. We can always tell by the numerous cuts where a mustache would technically be. His voice changed this year as well. I don't think I'm ready for him to grow up just yet. :001_unsure:

It is so incredibly strange to kiss my boys good morning and feel prickly faces! :001_huh:

[mommy4ever]

I would say no. We are going through the same thing. DS15 has been little for a long long time. In October we measured him as he was finally tall than me(5'2") and he was 5'3". In mid November, we decided to measure him again He was 5'5.5". Now he's about 5'7-ish. He is always tired, putting himself to bed at 8, reading 30-45 minutes and down til 6:30.

 

Food is costly one in the last year. But it's cheaper to supply good food, than have him waste his on junk at school because he's hungry. Not to mention the $ value on whole foods is money well spent nutritionally.

 

Keep a good supply of nutrient rich foods, make sure he is resting, and it will stop eventually. :lol:

[JeneralMom]

My father went from 5'5" to 6'5" over the space of one summer. I grew 5inches in three months (went from 5'0" to 5'5" and then grew a few more inches). It is uncomfortable, but not otherwise harmful.

[WistfulRidge]

My husband went from 5'2'' to 6'1'' between Christmas and Graduation of his senior year. According to his mother he did little more than eat and sleep. He had to not play any sports during those months so that he didn't injure himself. So 5'' in one year is probably just fine :)

[Cinder]

My friend's ds had a major growth spurt that was accompanied by stretch marks. My brother also experienced this but his growth spurt was probably also affected by hyperthyroidism. There were other symptoms besides the growth spurt, though.

 

Cinder

[MBM]

Yowza. The growth spurts some of you mention are outrageous. 10+ inches in a summer and overnight spurts! That is incredible. My eldest son is 6'3" but grew at a steady pace. He's 25 and appears to be done growing taller.

 

My husband also had a late growth spurt in high school going from the smallest to one of the taller boys. I like to joke that he grew taller to balance out the extra-wide tie he wore in his senior picture. That was back in the 70s.

 

Thanks for the interesting stories and information to keep in mind. :)

[qfbrenda]

Growth spurts CAN be a concern, but I don't know what you can do about it. LOL I'm only 5'1" and have size 7 feet--not a big person--but my feet grew so fast when I was young that my achilles tendon started to tear away from my heel bone. :glare: Ouch! I wore piano felt pads under my heels for a year or two so things could heal.

 

FWIW, my oldest grew about 6 inches in a year without any issues.