I have extreme Napoleon Complex. I assume we all have our insecurities: gray hair, halitosis, body odor, hair loss… But most of those traits are correctable or happen only for a certain duration, whereas I have been vertically challenged my whole life.
I wish I didn’t have such a complex about it, but inevitably someone will comment, “Whoah you are so short!” which puts me in the foulest of moods.
Or “Why are you so short?” to which I want to respond, “I don’t know. Why are you so fat?”
My family is short so I was destined for shortness. Throughout my life, I have tried to reason that at least I’m a girl and not a boy. Guys don’t seem to mind dating petite girls. I’ve dated guys as tall as 6’4″ and I am truthfully 4’10” without heels. I have always said I gravitated toward tall men to give my progeny a fighting chance.
Now that I’m a mother, I’m obsessed with how tall my child will be. I want to do everything in my power to bolster his physical stature. Pre-pregnancy I was 85 pounds and gave myself a goal of 40 pounds. Clearly I was not one of those pregnant women aiming for moderate weight gain! I didn’t quite reach the goal, gaining 35 pounds despite devouring bacon cheeseburgers and vanilla milkshakes every day. That’s 40% of my normal body weight. I practically added another 1/2 Catherine to my stomach. When Franco emerged weighing only 5 pounds 14 ounces, I was like, “Oh no no no! Are you sure? Can you please weigh him again?”
Given my insecurities, I have a lot vested in how tall Franco will be.
I’ve done Punnett Squares.
A pediatrician gave me the following formula:
- Add the mother’s height and the father’s height in either inches or centimeters.
- Add 5 inches (13 centimeters) for boys or subtract 5 inches (13 centimeters) for girls.
- Divide by two.
That would make Franco 5’7″. Not bad.
Then I’ve also heard that doubling a child’s height at their 2 year birthday is a good indicator. Franco is 2 in one month. I measured him yesterday and he was 30 inches. That would make him 5 feet tall. Gasp!
Since Franco is 3 percentile on height and weight, I ask during every pediatrician visit if we should start discussions with an endocrinologist. 2 year visit coming soon. Grow, Franco, grow!
Curious how your height played out based on genetics or any of the above calculations. Or how your teenaged or adult children’s heights have played out.
Well, according to this my girls could be around 5’5″ as my husband is 6’2″ and I am 5’2″. So, wouldn’t be upset with that either as least would be giving them a few extra inches if nothing else 😉
The metrics you cite to predict final height are just estimates and are certainly not fool-proof. Although being short can have it’s challenges, it also has it’s advantages (such as during long plane rides).
In my pediatric training we learn not to put much stock in those metrics. What’s important is to watch the percentile on the growth chart. If a child has consistently been at the 50th percentile and over the course of several visits has dropped to the 10th percentile, that is much more concerning than a child who has consistently been at the 5th percentile.
If Franco has been hanging out at the 3rd percentile and tracking along that line, then no cause to worry unless he falls off the growth chart completely (particularly given your short stature….If both parents are quite tall and their child is at the 3rd percentile then I might think twice).
It is possible that he will start moving up a few percentiles as he gets older. When he’s a bit older and staying consistently on one percentile then you can follow that line out to age 20 and get a good prediction of final height. If you look at the 3rd percentile line at age 20 that is about 64.5 inches. So even if he remains at the 3rd percentile it’s likely he’ll be at least 5’4″.
Placing a child on growth hormone has plenty of drawbacks and I would be hesitant to do it unless a specialist (i.e. a pediatric endocrinologist) thought it would be beneficial and have a good likelihood of success. Also this may not reassure you, try to focus on the positives, especially if he is otherwise healthy.
Scarlet is only 10th percentile for height and weight. I was even lower and then shot from 4′ 10″ to 5′ 6″ between 8th and 10th grades. So anything is possible. Cassidy is over six feet tall. Des is 70th percentile. I don’t get it! I think Scarlet will follow my trajectory and be very short until one day being above average.
Des will maybe always be tall average.
That’s my guess!
SO neat! I’ve never heard of this chart before, and think it’s interesting. I am 5″2 and always thought that was a bit on the short side, especially since everyone else in my family is long and tall and lean. Nope did not get that gene, I guess 🙂
But yea, at the end of the day, what matters obviously is that Franco is good and healthy which it sounds like he is 🙂 Hope all is well with you, momma! XOXO
I would feel your same worry if I had a girl. She’d most likely be taller than some boys for quite awhile. I’m not tall per say, I’d say more like average. I’ve rounded up to 5’5 but now Christopher is officially 5’5 and he’s taller than me. So rounding up caught up with me and he won’t allow me to say I’m 5’5. Anyway, so yeah he came out tall. I haven’t done the math, I’m just excited to see how tall he will actually become. Doc estimates between 6’2 to 6’4. Gasp!
“Why are you so short?” to which I want to respond, “I don’t know. Why are you so fat?” –This had me rolling. I used to be a gymnast. I was a tall gymnast and my dream was to be 4’10”. You know what they say. The grass is always greener….
My mother’s theory was chicken, that the extra protein gave us height. But my brother got to 5’7 and stopped while I ended up being 5’9″. So do you avoid organic milk and the growth hormones there?
I don’t believe any of those “formulas.” None have proven to be true for my kids. I am 5’2″ and my husband is 5’11”, but his dad and brothers are all over 6 feet and my mother is 5’7″. Gwen is done growing and is 5’5″, which thrilled me. James is about 5’7″ at age 14 1/2, and I’m sure he isn’t done growing.
You could always have Franco hang off the monkey bars to stretch out! 🙂
My husband and I both have tall genes on our father’s side and petite genes on our mom’s side. My husband is 5’8″, I’m 5’5″, so we ended up average height in spite of having parents at both ends of the spectrum. Our son grew to be 6’1″ and our daughter is 5’2″. Genetics are fascinating, right?
You have a son who is 6’1″ and a daughter who is 5’2″. That is crazy! I hope Franco pulled in some of the tall genes in his genetic makeup.
Very interesting. I am 5’9″, my ex is like 5’3″, my daughter is like 5’3″ and my son is 6’3″-ok.
Hi Catherine,
I know this post is old but I’m currently in a similar boat with my son. He is 1 and has consistently been 10th percentile for height and doctor doesn’t think it’ll change much as he grows. Can I ask what the updates are regarding your son’s growth? I’d really appreciate it!
hi ana, my son is now 6.5 years old, 40 pounds and consistently 3 percentile, but i’ve spoken to the pediatrician, endocrinologist and nutritionist about his weight/height and he is progressing well and healthy despite his small stature. the endocrinologist says he is fine, but taking hormones is an option that we are deciding against.