Does T and/or hormone blockers promote height growth?

[Guest ckoa97]

Does T promote height growth? And does does hormone blockers (Lupron) promote height growth? I showed signs of starting puberty at age 8, started at age 9, and finished a week before my 11th birthday. I'm 14 now and my birthday is September 23 so I'll be 15. I've had one shot of Lupron on April 23 and I'm still waiting for the next shots (check my last question if you like). I'll be starting T around my 15th birthday (hopefully and finally ) so that's younger than what most guys have the chance to start T. Guys older than me (like 20-25) say that they gained like an inch or two in height. I hope I can gain at least two inches. I'm currently and unfortunately still 5'6" (barefoot and during the day height). My mom is 5'4" and my dad is around my height 5'6" or 5'7". I only know my moms immediate family and I'm taller than all the women. Two of my uncles are 5'3" and 5'4" and the rest are my height and taller. Two of my uncles are 6'0" to maybe 6'3". My maternal grandparents are 5'2" and 5'4".

Here's my height over the years:

when i was born: 23 1/2 inches

age 8: 4'9" - 4'10"

age 9: 4'11" to 5'0:

age 10: 5'0" - 5'2"

age 11: 5'3" - 5'4"

age 12: 5'5" - 5'6"

age 13: 5'6"

Age 14: 5'6"

I'v stopped growing by the looks of it unless I get height from Lupron and T. I want to be about 5'9" or 5'10" at least. I'm 5'8" max in shoes. Please leave your answers. It means so very much to me.

[VickySGV]

Males have a different puberty range than girls do. Male puberty begins about 13-14 and lasts until about 25. Unless you have been pregnant, which will shut off a girl's puberty growth, (one of my daughters had that experience) you may get over on the male schedule and have another chance to "be a person folks will look up to" but I would not put much more height in your future based on your relatives, unless you can throw in an overactive pituitary gland or thyroid gland, neither of which make life very pleasant after a while.

[Guest aleon515]

I tried to google this. It seems that all the research on Lupron is really done for the purpose Lupron was created-- premature puberty. Kids taking it seemed to develop normally. I can guess you are not going to get much of a height gain from this stuff. You are probably not done growing at your age. You might get a spurt from T as you then start adolescence as a male. I am not a doctor, but that's the best I could gather.

This is a neat reference for puberty and very readable by kids.

http://www.teengrowth.com/index.cfm?action=info_article&ID_article=1363

Keep in mind that the ages here won't work for you.

I am guessing you will not be a really short man. Even if it's worse case and you don't grow at all, 5'6" is short but it wouldn't get you any stares.

--Jay Jay

[Guest Otto]

If your growth cartilage hasn't closed (need an x-ray test to see that) It will def' help you.

I haven't grow since 2 years (because of my ED) then I restarted eating and I have hormone blockers, guess what? +7 inches since september.

Now I'm 15.

PS: you're already super lucky by being 5'6"! I am 5'3" and my mom is like 5'1" and my father 5'7" x)

[Guest leo]

I'm not expert but iv been on T for 6 weeks and iv grown in height, I'm 22 but didn't start puberty till I was 15 though I'm 5'10 1/2

[Guest Raging Shadow]

ive grown very little, maybe a quarter of an inch over the last three years on Lupron and then on T

[Guest MrAwesome]

Answer is simply No. And actually once you start on T it can stop you from growing anymore.

This video mentions it. I also have a friend that told me he had to stop T for a month just after he had started, because they were trying to see if he could grow taller with growth hormones, and testosterone would stop them from growing.

[Guest Masculinity]

I've read that hormone blockers stop growth because if it stops puberty, it will stop growth because growth is part of that puberty process. In some guys, T does help them grow a few inches but that's very rare.

I'm 15 and 5'6 too.. I'm taller than every girl in my class.

[JJ]

Height and growth patterns are highly individual. my cis daughter was 5' 8" at 16 and predicted to grow to 5' 11' -her dad was 6' 5' with 2 collapsed vertebra and numerous aunts of his were over 6 feet-when she took up a habit that stopped her growth cold. Most of her father's family grow till age 25 as he did, I am 5' 5" and grew to that height at age 10 when early puberty hit and I never grew again. I had always been the tallest kid in my class and sometimes in my school. Funny thing is that I had shrunk to 5' 4" with age and weight and after 16 months on T and losing 200 lbs am now slightly over 5' 5" or taller than I have ever been. Weird. But I am also intersexed which may play a part in all this,

Anyway the point is that it is a very complex situation and I don't think there is just one answer. It depends on genetics and body chemistry. With many many variables in that equation. To complicate things there is very little concrete information about the effects of T on female bodied, It is pretty much a best guess, observation situation and opinions vary from Dr. to Dr.

Johnny

[Guest Lelouch]

I think it really depends on when you hit puberty. I was around 4'3" at 10, 4'4" at 11, 4'6" at 12, 4'8" at 13. and I don't remember the rest. All I know is that I'm 5'5"-5'6" now at 21. Even though most of my friends stopped growing at 14 or 15, I still did and still am now. I'm still kinda short for a guy but I guess that comes with the race as well. My mom is 4'11" and my dad is 5'8".

[Guest wolfySH]

My anatomy class might come in useful here.

H'ok, so, growth in long bones is done at the epiphyseal plates at the ends of each bone.

These epiphyseal plates are made of cartilage.

When we're kids, the cartilage growth is faster than the calcification of the bone (they're always sort of competing.)

When puberty hits, Estrogen tends to be one that slows the cartilage growth down the most (that puberty generally tends to happen sooner in cisgirls than in cisguys might also have something to do with the general height differences) -- so the bones calcify and we stop growing.

Testosterone will also eventually cause the calcification process to overtake the growth process.

Both of these hormones also promote growth, moreso T, which is why a 20+ year old (if they've still got some of an epiphyseal plate) might still gain a few inches when starting Testosterone-- but it seems to me that a hormone's main action after development is to allow for the bone to harden almost completely and prevent further growth.

I'd say if you wanted to be taller, and you're a kid, blockers might help more at that time.

Blockers are going to stop anything from kick-starting the growth process, sure, but it certainly won't allow for calcification of the bones, either.

Your cartilage growth will still beat out the hardening of the ends of your bones by a landslide-- that's my hypothesis, anyway.

In essence, it will delay puberty-- and it seems that those who start puberty later are generally taller-- this whole thing might have something to do with it.

But I'm not a doctor, so I can't reliably give you advice. This is just my guess based on what I've learned at uni.

[Guest Cal]

Like Wolfy said, it all depends how much cartilage you've got left in the ends of your long bones.

Assuming your growth plates haven't already closed, which they probably have not if you've been on hormone blockers, then T should probably give you a nice growth spurt. If you don't have cartilage left in your long bones, then you won't grow anymore. Like Wolfy said, a thin plate of cartilage can be found in the ends of your long bones. The cartilage grows on one edge and calcifies on the other. Carcification eventually overtakes cartilage proliferation and at that time, you can't grow anymore. The process is called "endochondral ossification" if you want to do more research.

Typically sex hormones speed up the process, pushing the bones to mature and causing growth spurts til there's no cartilage left at which point one reaches their adult height. If you've been on hormone blockers, then you probably haven't been having crazy puberty like growth spurts, so you've probably got a nice amount of cartilage left on those growth plates. Hopefully T will give you a few inches. However, I don't think T will change what height you're predisposed to grow to - just how fast you reach it. However I'm not sure anyone knows fully, as it's only been a few years since people so young have been given T. I'm mad jealous even, because I didn't start T til I was almost 18 and never got hormone blockers as a teen, meaning I have girl hips that will never go away.