Definition

Growth spurts are short periods during which your child undergoes fast growth in height and weight. Developmental growth spurts are a typical aspect of your child's maturation. Every child will have a period of rapid growth at some point during their physical development, from infancy to adolescence.

Children, from infants to teenagers, undergo growth patterns as they age. Each child is distinct and will develop at varying speeds before attaining physical maturity, often between the ages of 15 and 20. Children will have growth spurts during their development. Growth spurts happen when a child quickly achieves new physical growth milestones, such as height and weight.

Growth spurts and developmental milestones are different kinds of phenomena. Growth spurts are sudden and rapid physical changes as a child ages. The modifications involve augmentations in length, height, and weight.

Developmental milestones are specific acts and skills that indicate a child's progress in maturity at a particular point in time. Developmental milestones pertain to your child's cognitive and verbal, social, emotional, and motor skills.

Children have growth spurts at various developmental phases determined by their age:

Infants

Infants undergo substantial growth in the initial two years of life, both in height and mass. During this period, the infant will increase in length by around 25 cm and triple its weight within the first year of life.

Children

Your child's dietary preferences will shift throughout preschool and puberty, leading to a deceleration and plateau in growth. By age 5, your child's height should have doubled from their birth length. This growth will persist with consistent increments in height and weight throughout the year until puberty.

Adolescence

Adolescents will experience growth spurts concurrently with puberty, which marks sexual maturity. Girls will have a period of rapid growth between the ages of 9 and 15. Boys will undergo a period of rapid growth between the ages of 12 and 17 years. Every child will develop at their rate and may undergo puberty earlier or later than their contemporaries. Adolescents often undergo a growth spurt, resulting in an average height rise of 9–10 cm.

Causes

Growth spurts are a typical aspect of a child's growth as their bones and muscles develop, and the foods they consume contribute to fat accumulation in the body.

Risk Factor

Growth spurts in your child are caused by their genetic composition, which consists of genes inherited from their parents. Genes dictate the child's final height and growth rate.

In addition to genetic makeup, environmental factors that can impact a child's growth are:

• Nutrition and dietary habits
• Exposure to harmful substances in water or air, such as pollution or metals
• Adverse effects on fetal health or pregnancy problems

If you want to know more about pregnancy complications, you can read them here: Preeclampsia: Definition, Causes, Symptoms, And Treatment

Symptoms

The primary indicators of growth spurts are alterations in height and weight due to bone, muscle, and fat development. For instance, this can occur when a youngster wears pants and suddenly grows too short or the shoes get too tight.

Additional indicators of growth spurts are:

• Fluctuations in appetite. The child may exhibit increased hunger or consume more food during a meal.
• Changing sleep cycles. Children may experience increased daytime or nighttime sleep duration.
• Emotional instability.
• Dull pain in the legs, particularly in the calves, knees, and front thighs. Muscle cramps may occur following intense physical activity. Rest will typically enhance this condition.
• Permanent teeth eventually replace perennial teeth.
• Puberty changes (menstruation, vocal changes, pubic hair growth).

Diagnosis

During health examinations, the doctor will monitor the infant's height and weight. The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will plot the measures on the growth curve they created. This curve is utilized to see if your child is developing in accordance with the expected rate for children of the same age.

Growth spurts do not lead to medical problems, so seeing a doctor is unnecessary. The doctor will monitor your child's height and weight during future health check-ups and inform you if your child is growing within the expected range for their age.

Read more: Stunting: Definition, Causes, Symptoms, And Treatment

Management

A growth spurt is not a medical problem and does not require any specific treatment. You can assist your child during a growth spurt.

Infants under the age of one typically exhibit growth spurts through increased fussiness and hunger. During growth spurts, school-aged children and teenagers may experience changes in food, sleep, behavior, and height and weight changes. During this period of rapid growth, you can assist your child by:

• Offer supplementary nourishment to satiate your child's hunger
• Continue to encourage children to develop positive sleep habits and consistent sleep patterns
• Exhibit patience when your child experiences emotional fluctuations
• Muscle cramps and pain may be relieved by applying warm compresses, massage, and light stretching. For pain relief, over-the-counter anti-pain medications such as paracetamol may be administered

You can read more about paracetamol here: Paracetamol: How It Works, Contraindications And Drug Interactions

Complications

Growing spurts are a natural aspect of a child's growth and do not lead to specific health issues or concerns.

Due to your child's physical development, changes in feeding or sleeping patterns may impact their emotions. These alterations could make your kid more irritable than usual, but this does not indicate pain. Growth spurts do not result in limb pain. It is common for children to be picky eaters during a growth spurt. This is a transient and recognized aspect of infant development.

Prevention

Growth spurts are inevitable, as they are an inherent aspect of your child's developmental process. Children will undergo a growth spurt at their rate when their body is ready to rise in height and weight until they attain physical maturity.

When to see a doctor?

Growth spurts occur more rapidly in young children and persist for longer in teenagers, typically not exceeding one week. If your child exhibits prolonged fussiness or discomfort for over a week, it is advisable to seek medical advice.

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