10 Highly Effective Height Increasing Tips For Teenagers

There’s not much time before your body stalls vertical growth; try these helpful tips soon.

Medically Reviewed by Reda Elmardi, RDN
By Jyotsana Rao

Teenage is the best time to work on your body to become fit and tall. Following these height increasing tips for teenagers support you in reaching your goal of growing tall. While some of these are exercises, some are lifestyle changes. So, if you are a teenager and want to increase your height, this article is for you. Scroll down to know these tips and increase your height naturally.

Height Increasing Tips For Teenagers

Check out some of the best tips to increase height in teenagers.

1. Healthy Breakfast

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A healthy breakfast is recommended by all diet experts as part of a proper lifestyle. Skipping breakfast leads to gastric problems and ulcers, and increases the acid content in the stomach, causing its lining to erode away. A healthy breakfast boosts metabolism and helps in greater absorption of nutrients. This in turn helps in height gain in teenagers.

2. Proper Nutrition

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Proper nutrition determines the body’s growth pattern and also determines height gain. Most children in India are malnourished. Malnutrition leads to stunted growth and these kids fail to reach their actual height by the time they hit puberty. Hence, a balanced diet is very necessary for adequate nutrition. A meal should be rich in zinc, manganese and phosphorus that aid growth (1), (2), (3). Apart from that, a diet rich in proteins helps aid height and growth as proteins are the building blocks of the body (4).

3. Having Adequate Sleep and Rest

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Proper sleep patterns determine the body’s growth. It is only when we sleep that the body regenerates its tissues for growth and repair. Hence, rest is very important. A proper time is to be fixed for rest because rest is very important for the human growth hormone to be generated in the body. It is necessary to get eight to ten hours of sleep every day. Proper hormonal secretion is aided by rest and proper sleep timings; hence, adequate sleep helps in attaining height and growth (5).

4. Frequent, Smaller Meals

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Frequent, smaller meals help to keep the body recharged and high on energy. So it is better to have six meals a day rather than three in order to regulate the metabolism. Smaller meals are more frequent and help in quicker absorption of nutrients by the body. These nutrients ensure good hormonal regulation, which in turn, helps the growth hormone in the body to promote growth and attain a good height.

5. Exercise and Yoga Regime

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Exercise plays a very important role in height attainment. Height-increasing exercises for teenagers is the best way to adopt. Exercises help stretch out the limbs and body tissues, and some specific exercises like skipping or climbing help in height gain (5). Sports like basketball, swimming, tennis and football have been known to increase height. Apart from that, certain yoga asanas are very effective for height gain.

6. Maintain Ideal Body Weight

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Obesity has been known to cause stunted growth (6). In order to grow in height, it is crucial to maintain an ideal body weight.

7. Drink Plenty of Water

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One of the simplest height increasing tips for teenagers. Water detoxifies the body and cleanses it. It aids in the absorption of nutrients that help in height gain.

8. Avoid Growth Inhibitors

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Growth inhibitors like smoking or drinking cause stunted growth. These must be avoided. Use of narcotics or even antibiotics acts as growth inhibitors and stunts the body’s growth.

9. Practice Good Posture

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Good posture helps to align the body’s structure so that it grows taller (7). Slouching and slumping stunt height gain and hence, should be avoided.

10. Avoid Smoking and Drinking

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Smoking and drinking at an immature age stops the natural growth of the body and makes the body stunted (8). These must be avoided if one wants to grow taller.

Height-increasing tips for teenagers is probably one of the most talked-about subjects by the parents and their children themselves. Although an individual’s height mostly depends on their genetics, proper nutrition, regular exercise, and a few other lifestyle changes can play a significant role in helping them grow a few inches. Always try to have a healthy breakfast, keep your body hydrated, and get sufficient sleep. Eat foods rich in zinc, phosphorus, manganese, and protein, which aid growth. The chances of stunted growth are high among those who are obese or overweight. So, try to maintain an ideal body weight. Also, drinking, smoking, and narcotics, which are considered growth inhibitors, must be done away with at any cost for effective results.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is 5.7 a good height for a 17 year old?

Yes, it is an average height for a 17 year old. However, it depends on the genetics and overall physique of the child as well.

Does milk make you taller?

Milk consumption is not a factor that determines if someone is tall or short. However, it is replete with bone-strenghtening calcium and important minerals and vitamins that aid proper muscular growth and overall development.

Can you still grow taller after your first period?

Yes, peak growth is usually within 1-2 yrs of reaching puberty.

Sources

Articles on StyleCraze are backed by verified information from peer-reviewed and academic research papers, reputed organizations, research institutions, and medical associations to ensure accuracy and relevance. Read our editorial policy to learn more.

  1. Efficacy of zinc supplementation on improvement of weight and height growth of healthy 9-18 year children
    https://www.researchgate.net/publication/285910277_Efficacy_of_zinc_supplementation_on_improvement_of_weight_and_height_growth_of_healthy_9-18_year_children
  2. Phosphorus
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/labs/pmc/articles/PMC4642415/
  3. Essentiality of Manganese for Bone Health: An Overview and Update
    https://www.researchgate.net/publication/351796844_Essentiality_of_Manganese_for_Bone_Health_An_Overview_and_Update
  4. Dietary protein intake and human health
    https://www.researchgate.net/publication/290213882_Dietary_protein_intake_and_human_health
  5. Sleep and Wellbeing Now and in the Future
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/labs/pmc/articles/PMC7216147/
  6. Stunting Is Associated with Overweight in Children of Four Nations That Are Undergoing the Nutrition Transition
    https://www.researchgate.net/publication/14207783_Stunting_Is_Associated_with_Overweight_in_Children_of_Four_Nations_That_Are_Undergoing_the_Nutrition_Transition
  7. What Has Neuroimaging Taught Us on the Neurobiology of Yoga? A Review
    https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/labs/pmc/articles/PMC7362763/
  8. Prevalence and socio-demographic correlates of stunting and thinness among Pakistani primary school children
    https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2458-11-790
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Jyotsana Rao is an engineering graduate from NIT, Nagpur, who discovered her love for writing during her undergraduate days. She... more

Reda Elmardi

(RDN)
Reda Elmardi is a registered dietician, certified nutritionist, and certified strength and conditioning specialist trainer. He has more than 10... more

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