My Body · Height, Weight & Shape
Can I Grow Taller?
By the eva team · · 2 min read
You may continue growing while puberty is still progressing, but nobody can predict your final height perfectly. Genetics has the biggest influence, while puberty timing, nutrition, sleep, overall health and hormones also affect growth. In girls, the fastest height growth usually happens before the first period; many grow approximately 2.5–5 centimetres afterward, although every timeline is different.
1. Can I Still Grow Taller?
Possibly. Whether you have more growing left depends less on your exact age and more on where your body is in puberty. Teenagers who are earlier in puberty usually have more growth remaining than those whose puberty is nearly complete.
2. Genes Set Most Of Your Height Range
Height is influenced by many genes inherited from your biological family, which is why family members may share similar builds or growth patterns. Genes provide a likely range rather than an exact guaranteed number, so siblings can still finish at different heights.
3. Puberty Brings Your Fastest Growth Spurt
During puberty, hormones signal the bones and other tissues to grow more rapidly. In girls, the growth spurt usually begins after breast development starts, and much of the fastest height gain happens before the first period.
4. Your First Period Does Not Stop Growth Overnight
Starting your period does not mean you instantly stop getting taller. It usually means the fastest growth stage has already passed and growth is beginning to slow. Many girls grow another one to two inches around 2.5 to 5 centimetres after their first period, but some grow more or less.
5. Healthy Habits Support Your Natural Growth
Regular meals with enough nutrients, adequate sleep, enjoyable physical activity and proper healthcare help your body grow and develop as well as it naturally can. Sleep is especially important because the body releases growth hormone during sleep. These habits support your growth potential, but they cannot promise a particular final height.
6. There Is No Safe Height Shortcut
Stretching, hanging exercises, special shoes or online “height-growth” products cannot safely force your bones to grow beyond their natural potential. Growth in height happens at growth plates, which gradually close when physical growth is complete. Be cautious with supplements that promise extra height, because some products may be unproven or unsafe.
7. A Growth Check Can Give Better Answers
Talk to a trusted adult or healthcare professional if your growth appears to stop suddenly, your height moves noticeably away from its usual growth-chart pattern or you have no signs of puberty by age 13. A clinician can review your growth over time and may use your puberty stage, family pattern or a bone-age X-ray to understand how much growth may remain.