1. You Grow Fastest In Your First Year
Kids seem to sprout quickly — just ask any parent who has to keep buying new clothes month after month, year after year. But how exactly does growth happen? People grow at their fastest rate as babies in the first year of life, adding about 10 inches to their height from birth to age 1, after which height increases somewhat steadily (and nowhere near as rapidly) until adolescence, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Girls usually stop growing two to three years after they get their period, and while some boys reach their adult height in high school, others continue growing into their early twenties.
Ever swear that your child has grown taller overnight? You may be right. Most growth hormone is released during sleep, so ensuring your kids get a good night’s rest may help them reach their full potential.
2. Americans Are No Longer the World’s Tallest
In the 18th and 19th centuries, America was home to the tallest people in the world, but today that honor goes to the Netherlands. Today, Dutch men and women average 6 feet and 5 feet 6.5 inches, respectively. U.S. men average 5 feet 9 inches and women average nearly 5 feet 4 inches tall.
Why the slip in comparative stature? “Americans may be falling behind because of lack of access to health care and nutritional deficiencies from eating too much sugar and fat and not enough fruits and vegetables,” says Richard Steckel, PhD, professor of economics, anthropology, and history at Ohio State University in Columbus.
The world’s shortest people, by the way, hail from Indonesia, Bolivia, India, and the Philippines.