1. Skip to navigation
  2. Skip to content
  3. Skip to sidebar

Topics:

Growth spurts

How does your preteen grow? A sudden increase in height can be disorienting for your tweens

By
//
Originally published in Today's Parent January 2009

You could almost swear it was only a week ago that your son got new jeans, and already they’re barely covering the tops of his ankles. Or your daughter has suddenly grown so tall — even elegant! This is a time of dizzyingly fast growth. Adam Baxter-Jones, associate dean at the College of Kinesiology at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, explains how it goes: “Maximum growth in stature peaks in girls at 12 when the average growth is about nine to 10 centimetres [3½ to almost four inches] per year. In boys it happens two years later and at a greater speed — about 11 to 12 centimetres [about four to 4¾ inches] in a year.” Whew!

Weigth gain and growth spruts

Kids also tend to get a little heavier just before they have the growth spurt. Toronto paediatrician Miriam Kaufman explains, “That weight gain actually fuels some of the growth, especially with boys — they seem to need constant fuelling.”

And girls will find that their weight distribution is changing — they’re getting breasts and hips and their centre of gravity is different.

If it’s a surprise for parents to find a taller kid sitting across from them at the breakfast table, just imagine how it must feel to the child: all arms and legs!

“Kids this age are having to deal with a whole different physical relationship to the world,” says Kaufman. “You know what it’s like when you get a new pair of glasses; you look down and the ground is at a different distance. For these kids, the ground really is at a different distance! It has to be disconcerting — trying to be coordinated and make their way through the world.”

Kids may feel self-conscious as they get used to their new, unfamiliar bodies — especially those who’ve been adept at dance or sports. You almost want to give a kid a hug. But Kaufman cautions, “Hugs are always great — in private. Don’t hug them in public and don’t say anything about their body or other changes in front of anyone else.”

Subscribe to Today's Parent for just $14.95* That's only $1.25 an issue!

May We Also Suggest...

What do you think?