Bone age, in layman’s terms, is the age of the bone, and the end of the unfinished bone is called the epiphysis. Bone age is generally determined by taking an x-ray of the left hand above the wrist bone. If the epiphysis is not closed, the cartilage layer can be clearly seen between the joint and the articulation, and the gap between the small bones at the lower end of the hand is not completely fused, which means that the epiphysis is not completely fused and still has growth potential. Once the epiphysis is closed, the cartilage layer between the joint and the joint is gone, the gap becomes very tight, the gap between the small bones at the lower part of the hand is completely fused, and the epiphysis has completely fused, which means that there is no longer any growth potential.
4. Bone age is measured every 6 months for children between the age of 5 and puberty, and every 3 months for children entering puberty, in order to keep track of the child’s bone growth and predict height. It is true that there is a difference between early and late growth of each child, and the bone age can truly reflect the actual space for children to grow taller.
The prediction of final height in adulthood is mainly based on bone age, but must be integrated with genetics, acquired diseases, degree of sexual development, nutrition and other factors. If a 10-year-old boy with a height of 130cm, a bone age of 9 years, and parents also of medium stature, predicted height in the normal range, adult height may be 172cm; 1 year later height of 136cm , began to develop, bone age growth faster than age also 11 years, it should be measured by the standard of 11-year-old children, height is moderately short, adult height may only be 165cm. if he is also found to So each prediction is based on the current situation, and with the growth of the child’s age and bone age, the initiation of sexual development, especially the impact of some diseases, the prediction needs to be made again, and it also needs to be combined with all other indications of the child’s examination, and there are special treatment guidelines.
Precocious puberty is a “roadblock” to growth
Precocious puberty can make the bones grow too fast and make the epiphysis fuse earlier, so that the growth cycle of children will be significantly shortened.
There are clear indications of precocious puberty in children, and in general, if a girl starts to develop her breasts before the age of 8 weeks and a boy has an enlarged penis and testicles before the age of 9 weeks, this is the phenomenon of precocious puberty.
Precocious puberty in children can be divided into central and peripheral, which used to be also called true and pseudo-precocious puberty. There are many diseases such as intracranial tumors, hypothyroidism, ovarian tumors, etc. that can cause precocious puberty, so if you find that your child has early sexual signs, you should first consult a doctor to distinguish the type and determine the cause. The central precocious puberty that cannot be found organic lesion is called idiopathic, which is more common in girls.
In the case of idiopathic true precocious puberty, the main goal of treatment is to inhibit development and delay menarche; slow down the growth of bone age and improve the final height in adulthood. Children with long and severe disease can be treated with GnRH agonist injection; those with shorter and milder disease can also be treated with herbal medicine to achieve satisfactory results. Early detection of precocious puberty is entirely possible to control, but if it is delayed too long, or the child is older, or the sexual development is nearly mature, the best time for treatment is lost, and the effect is very poor.
For precocious puberty caused by organic diseases, treatment of the original disease is the main concern; especially for boys with precocious puberty and pseudo-precocious puberty, it is more likely to be caused by organic diseases and must be diagnosed and treated by specialists as early as possible.
Growth hormone is a hormone produced by the body itself; it is the driving force of height growth. Many parents are worried when they hear “hormone”, but in fact, it is safe as long as it is used reasonably under the guidance of doctors.
Second, do not blindly take supplements to increase height
If your child is diagnosed with short stature, parents should not give your child a supplement, which may be counterproductive and in some cases may even cause premature maturity in children. Parents should promptly reflect on their child’s diet, sleep, exercise and emotions, and even living environment, and then make targeted adjustments. The diet should be balanced to ensure comprehensive nutrition. Foods that are good for growth include dairy products, drink 1 bottle of milk every day, and be careful not to replace milk with dairy drinks, because the main ingredients of dairy drinks are water and additives such as flavors; soy products; animal foods such as eggs, meat and fish; and various kinds of coarse grains to promote the body’s metabolism, enhance physical fitness and promote growth.
Many foods are less nutritious, but can increase the child’s satiety, affecting the intake of other foods, and some also consume calcium in the body, eventually leading to malnutrition.
Three, carbonated drinks
Some data show that 60% of children who prefer to drink carbonated beverages are affected by calcium deficiency, especially the high phosphorus content in cola-type drinks, excessive consumption leads to imbalance in the ratio of calcium and phosphorus in the body, resulting in stunted growth.
Four, sweet food
If the amount of sugar reaches 16% to 18% of the total diet, it can disrupt the metabolism of calcium in the body, preventing the calcium effect in the body and affecting the growth; excessive consumption of drinks containing a lot of sugar, so that blood sugar will soon be high, and there is no hunger, which affects normal eating, thus disrupting the digestive system and causing malnutrition.
In addition, fried food, puffed food, pickled food, canned products due to the large loss of nutrients in the production process, and the use of a variety of additives, protein, vitamins and other nutrients but little, is not conducive to children’s nutritional absorption. Fast-growing chicken, river fish can cause early bone age development, leading to precocious puberty, and eventually early epiphyseal closure, so that height development is inhibited.
Five, to grow taller more exercise
Preschoolers – practice frog jumping. Preschool children’s joints and ligaments are still fragile, it is not recommended to do jump rope, play ball and other difficult and strenuous sports, otherwise, it will affect the nutritional supply of bones and muscles due to excessive physical exertion, but will affect the normal growth and development of children. Frog jumping is a good way to exercise to improve physical fitness, simple and easy to learn. Exercise time does not have to be deliberately rationed, as long as the movement can be.
Elementary school students – can choose to jump rope, touch high, bar suspension. Specific exercise methods are: jump 110-150 rope in a minute, rest 2 minutes, repeatedly jump 5 groups; touch high 20 times, rest a minute, repeatedly touch 5 groups; bar hanging 15-20 seconds, and then down the activity, repeatedly do 10 groups. Exercise time: half an hour each morning and evening is recommended.
Middle and high school students (13-18 years old children) – can choose to play badminton, basketball, swimming, running and other sports. Children in this age group are already very good at both endurance and explosive power, so they are more suitable for this type of exercise. Exercise time: 1 hour per day.