7 Factors That Influence A Child’s Height – Being Parents

We are always concerned about the factors that influence the height of the child, therefore, we constantly monitor his growth and try to feed him properly. Contrary to popular belief, growth is not just about food.

Indeed, there are many factors that influence a child’s height, such as genetics and many others – which we will not discuss in this article – that directly influence growth.

Factors that influence the height of the child

Genetic

It is one of the best known and most common factors. Indeed, genetics directly influence the size of the baby, in fact, it is one of the most predominant factors. So if everyone in the family is grown up, chances are the kids are grown up too. The genetic load is of great importance.

Gender

In general, girls are an inch or two shorter than boys. There is also a cranial difference; boys have a slightly larger head, usually an inch or two taller than girls. Of course, this varies depending on the genetic load.

Environmental conditions

The climatic and environmental conditions of a given geographical area influence the size that a human being can reach during his period of growth. For example, in Scandinavian countries people tend to be very tall. While elsewhere there are people who live in large cities and are generally smaller in size.

A healthy diet

One of the other best-known factors is healthy eating since the child is in his mother’s womb until adolescence. When we talk about eating well, we are talking about eating healthy with all the vitamins, proteins and minerals that your body needs, regardless of the proportion.

When they eat too much food, children get fat instead of taller. It is therefore very important to feed them properly.

Although genetic load is one of the main factors influencing a child’s height, diet also plays a vital role. It is important to assess whether we are feeding our children correctly, not so much by quantity, but for the nutrients and vitamins their bodies are receiving. If this is not the case, we must educate ourselves in order to offer them a better diet.

• Low-resource areas. In places where resources are scarce, such as Africa for example, children generally do not eat well and their bodies do not receive all the nutrients necessary for their development.

Lack of sleep

Sleep is extremely important for humans, even more so for a child. Growth hormone (hGH), or somatropin, has higher activity at night, but is also secreted at intervals every 3 to 5 hours a day.

The practice of sports

Physical activity stimulates the production of bone cells that help build strong, healthy bones. Participation in sports can greatly help the growth of children.

Studies indicate genetics influence more than nutrition

According to studies conducted by researchers from the GIANT team, 80% of a child’s height is determined by genes. The remaining 20% ​​depends on factors such as nutrition and the environment. But many studies are still needed to determine other influencing factors.

Other more recent research, conducted by more than 300 medical institutions, has identified more than 400 genes that could influence the height of humans, more than double what was previously discovered.

To arrive at these results, the scientists analyzed data from the genomes of 253,288 people, detecting a total of 627 variations in 424 different genetic regions of DNA, all directly related to size.