How To Get Taller At 12

When it comes to height increase, both boys and girls will experience significant impacts on their growth at the age of 12. Despite gender-dependent differences, this is still a golden growth age for teenagers to increase height and maximize their growth. Let's learn more about how to grow taller fast at age 12 effectively.

Contents

1 Why should you focus on how to grow taller fast at 12?
2 What is the average height at the age of 12?
3 How to grow taller faster at age 12?
- 3.1 A balanced diet
- 3.2 Good eating habits
- 3.3 Get quality sleep
- 3.4 Exercise regularly
- 3.5 Maintain a healthy weight
- 3.6 Spend time in the sun
- 3.7 Improve posture
- 3.8 Take supplements to support height growth
4 REFERENCES

Why should you focus on how to grow taller fast at 12?

Puberty is a vital stage that both boys and girls typically go through a significant growth spurt with dramatic changes in physical development, turning young children into mature teens and then adults along the time. This occurs at different ages for each gender.

For girls, puberty begins around age 10, along with breast development and menstruation. Their height growth usually reaches its peak by about 2 years after puberty began, which is 12 on average [1]. Because their growth spurts start sooner, girls usually stop growing or grow slowly at around 16 [2].

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Boys begin their puberty around 2 years later than girls, usually at the age of 12 -13 [1]. They start with a deeper voice and facial hair and tend to surge their growth at 12 to 15 years old. Most boys will continue to develop their muscles and growth until 18 years old [2].

What is the average height at the age of 12?

If you have a 12-year-old at home, he/she either is in the middle of a huge growth spurt or has not grown much at all. In the latter case, knowing the average height for boys and girls aged 12 might ease your worries.

According to the World Health Organization, boys at the age of 12 on average are 58.7 inches or 149.1 centimeters tall [ 3 ]. On the other hand, for girls, the average height at the age of 12 is 59.4 inches or 151 centimeters [ 4 ]. These are the heights of boys and girls in the 50th percentile on the CDC growth charts respectively.

This information can be helpful for parents to know if their child's growth is on track, but when monitoring changes in growth, doctors usually take into consideration other factors such as weight and the pattern of growth over time.

How to grow taller faster at age 12?

Keeping in mind the importance of age 12 in adolescence growing years, here are some effective ways for teenage boys and girls to surge up their height and reach their full growth potential.

A balanced diet

One of the most significant ways on how to grow taller faster at 12 is to ensure a nutritious and proper diet for your teens. Nutrition is especially important for teenagers during the growth spurt of puberty, that the required calories and nutrients are at one of their highest points considering the entire life span.

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A balanced diet includes all four groups of key nutrients in appropriate proportion. The consumption of more or less of these can be detrimental to the growth and development of your body:

Protein is vital for the growth of all muscles, bones, organs, tissues and cartilages in the body, especially in the development stage of a growth spurt. Foods that are high in proteins include eggs, beef, poultry, fish, nuts, beans, grains, milk and dairy products.
Fat reserves the energy for your body and assists the formation of tissues. Healthy fat provides concentrated calories that support the functioning of the brain and nervous system. Foods rich in this nutrient are fish oil, avocado, olives, nuts and seeds.
Carbohydrates provide the main source of energy and participate in the formation of cells and tissues in the body. Carbohydrates are highly contained in rice, bread, potatoes, grains, etc.
Vitamins and minerals are crucial to the proper functioning and development of every element in the body. Although there are many different types, certain vitamins and minerals play important roles to increase height such as vitamin D or calcium. Consume foods such as fish, leafy greens, eggs, fruits, etc. for high amounts of these nutrients.

Good eating habits

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Aside from a balanced diet, it is also important to build up healthy eating patterns for young teenagers. Many teenage boys and girls do not care much about nutrition but prefer to fulfill their tastes with more fast food, processed food and sweets. It may be difficult to fully eliminate fast food burgers, pizzas or carbonated drinks out of the menu, but make sure that your children consume them occasionally.

All teens should try to eat three meals per day without skipping while skipping meals is quite common and becomes a bad habit. It is recommended that regular meals should be spread out for food intake throughout the day.

To prevent them from skipping meals, it is suggested that light meals or healthy snacks such as smoothies or bananas can be included in their menu. Some girls are also cautious about their bodies and may go on a diet. Making sure they do not get hungry too much that leads to unbalanced nutrition is a critical way on how to grow taller fast at 12 years old girl.

Get quality sleep

Sleep is so important that it must always be highlighted for children, teenagers and adults as well. In fact, quality sleep is one of the most critical factors that can help increase height and enhance body development properly. Staying up late or skipping sleep will be harmful to health and body buildup.

Therefore, make sure that your teens get a good sleep of 8 hours most nights from around 10:00 PM. Assist their sleep with comfortable sleeping conditions such as appropriate room temperature or clean sleeping space. Also, avoid using mobile devices and heavy snacks before sleeping for better sleep quality.

Exercise regularly

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Exercises and sports are highly beneficial for teenage boys and girls to increase their height naturally. Exercises in general and outdoor sports in particular are able to effectively facilitate the growth of your body, bones, cartilages and musculoskeletal system.

Sports such as swimming, basketball, volleyball, etc. are popular for teenagers to play, especially recommended for how to grow taller fast at 12 years old boy. For instance, swimming is an enjoyable activity that helps to stretch your body and strengthen the spine for a taller and healthy body. Teenage girls can engage in stretching or yoga exercises to increase height and keep their bodies fit.

Maintain a healthy weight

Being overweight at the age of 12 can hinder the chance of achieving maximal height. Why? Because the heavier a person is, the more stress is put on the spine. This compresses the intervertebral discs of the spine, thus negatively affecting height gain. What is more, teenagers putting on weight uncontrollably can run the risk of developing obesity, followed by a range of serious health issues.

Whether it is to keep an eye on food intake or lead an active lifestyle, parents should be role models for their children and help them maintain a healthy weight. At the end of the day, it's all the hands of parents to ensure their 12-year-olds can grow to their full potential.

Spend time in the sun

Whatever your age, the body needs some sun exposure. This natural source of light is even more pivotal to a growing body due to vitamin D – a vitamin produced when the skin is exposed to the sun. It can enhance calcium absorption to help your teens grow healthier, stronger bones. Although most vitamin D needs can be satisfied with food or supplements, it only takes a little time spent in the sun to get the required vitamin D levels.

Furthermore, sun exposure plays a part in boosting mood, improving sleep quality, and strengthening the immune system. Parents can encourage their children to exercise outdoors to enjoy the combined benefits of exercise and sun exposure. Don't forget to remind them to wear sunscreen while you're at it!

Improve posture

Poor posture can increase the strain on bones, joints, ligaments, and muscles. As your 12-year-old is growing rapidly, improper posture can result in abnormal spine growth, abnormal positioning, or even arthritis later in life.

Improving your teen's posture not only helps to relieve muscle strain but also promotes height increase and self-confidence. Be a good example and correct your own posture instead of saying "Straighten up!" all the time. Yoga and sports like swimming are good practices for better posture as well. As teenagers already spend most of their time sitting at school, don't let them sit more at home by limiting their screen time.

Take supplements to support height growth

As previously discussed, the growing body needs a variety of nutrients for proper development. This, however, is easier said than done. In fact, many boys and girls at 12 years of age find it difficult to consume a healthy and balanced diet on a daily basis given their parents' busy schedules. For this reason, height growth supplements can be a smart choice to complement their diet and support their height increase. While some of the best height growth pills deliver beneficial nutrients for height development, others might be of low quality with only extravagant claims about its non-existent benefits. As a consequence, it is utterly important to seek high-quality height growth supplements for the expected results.

Find out more about height growth pills

In general, age 12 is golden in the developmental stage of teenagers to increase height and enhance body growth. A balanced diet not only provides the right nutrients to get taller but also a way to build up proper overall health for your teens.

Pay attention to their sleep and eating habits to ensure that your teens are living a healthy lifestyle. Also, encourage them to engage in sports and exercises to enjoy fun activities that actually benefit their health and growth.

REFERENCES

[1] https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/growth-6-12.html

[2] https://www.healthline.com/health/parenting/how-tall-will-my-child-be

[ 3 ] https://cdn.who.int/media/docs/default-source/child-growth/growth-reference-5-19-years/height-for-age-(5-19-years)/hfa-boys-5-19years-per.pdf?sfvrsn=56a734fa_4

[ 4 ] https://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts/data/set2clinical/cj41c072.pdf