It's often heard that children who don't get enough sleep won't grow tall, but why is that? There's also talk that not exercising stunts growth. And I've heard that eating too many sweets can also prevent children from growing tall. What's the reason for all of this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Doctors point out that the key issue is insufficient secretion of \"growth hormone\" hormones, which then affects growth. Some are due to illness, but most are due to poor lifestyle habits, especially consuming too much sugar daily, posing a significant threat to children's height and health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lifestyle habits or factors affecting a child's growth and physique<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Around seventy percent of growth hormone secretion occurs between 9 pm and 3 am, during deep sleep. Therefore, sleeping early and sleeping well is essential for children to grow up strong and healthy. If they frequently stay up late, have a poor sleeping environment, or due toAllergy<\/a>Nasal congestion, itchy skin, sleep apnoea and other conditions can affect sleep quality, which in turn can indirectly affect growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Children who are picky eaters and malnourished have high growth hormone levels in their blood, but their growth factorsIGF-1<\/a>but it is clearly insufficient, so it will also affect growth. Children from this group are usually thin and small in appearance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Child growth is mainly controlled by growth hormone secreted by the anterior pituitary gland. Growth hormone is generally secreted during deep sleep at night, so good sleep quality, a balanced diet, sufficient nutrition, and moderate exercise can all help stimulate the body to grow taller. For infants from birth to one year old, height can increase by more than 20 centimetres in one year, after which the rate of increase gradually decreases. Generally speaking, children grow about five centimetres per year after the age of four, until puberty when there is a spurt in growth. Therefore, it is very important to record your child's height and weight every year. As long as parents understand that their child is growing according to the growth chart, there is no need to worry excessively. If they find that their child's growth rate suddenly slows down, they should seek medical examination as soon as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What are growth-promoting injections?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The \"growth-promoting injections\" mentioned in public discourse are actually injections of \"growth hormone\".<\/p>\n\n\n\n Growth hormone is secreted by the anterior pituitary gland. It is transported by the blood to the liver and major organs in the body, especially bone and muscle cells, stimulating growth. In addition, growth hormone also regulates the metabolism of sugar and fat. Before using medication, the doctor will conduct a thorough examination and assessment of the child to identify the cause of their short stature, and then decide whether medication is suitable and determine the dosage. Doctors point out that whether it is suitable to administer growth hormone, blood must first be drawn to check whether the body's growth hormone concentration is insufficient. Once diagnosed with growth hormone deficiency and there is no brain lesion, growth hormone injections can be considered. The timing of intervention should not be too late as the treatment effect is worse when the bone age of girls and boys approaches 14 and 16 years old respectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If parents have any concerns about their child's growth and development, it is recommended that they consult a paediatrician for an early assessment. Primecare Paediatric Centre provides assessment services for paediatric endocrinology and growth and development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Growth hormone can be used medically to treat various causes ofDwarfism<\/a>Besides being used for growth hormone deficiency, it is now also used for chronic renal failure, syndromes such as Turner syndrome, Prader-Willi syndrome, SHOX gene deficiency; and children with idiopathic short stature and small for gestational age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Should you get growth hormone injections early? Is there a golden period for injections?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n