Many parents ask this, and even more secretly want to ask.
Our society tends to reward height, as evident in the CEOs and presidents we choose. It seems unfair, since the majority of height determination is genetic. Really, the best thing you can do to give your children a height advantage is to provide them with taller parents.
Nevertheless, when asked, I do offer parents some specific modifiable lifestyle factors:
Protect Sleep
A child’s growth hormone surges during sleep. Getting adequate sleep allows for this and also gives time for the body to recuperate. Poor sleep stresses the body, and immune function suffers along with growth. Consider this as your calendar creeps activities into sleep time.
What surprised me: While we know that sleep is restorative and necessary for growth, there are few studies actually linking sleep duration and height. One study, however, found that Japanese toddlers sleeping more than 11.5 hours were more likely to be tall at age three than those sleeping less. The effect size was small, so don’t stress if your child wakes on their own at 10 or 11 hours, but if your kid looks like they need more sleep every morning, try moving bedtime up a little bit– not for the height, but for overall health and mood.
Ensure Adequate Nutrition
Adequate. No need to go overboard. Most kids in developed nations are meeting or exceeding their protein and caloric requirements, but balancing diets with a variety of plant foods, fats, and healthy carbs is important. Vitamin D and calcium are necessary for bone health, but I did not find evidence for their use to promote height unless a child is truly deficient.
What Surprised Me: Most studies suggest adequate protein is the major nutritional player in height outcomes, but some studies found that more protein was associated with shorter stature. This seemed to be time-dependent. For example, higher maternal animal protein intake and higher infant animal protein intake between 6–12 months were both associated with slightly shorter children and greater adiposity.
Consume Dairy
While I personally like to lean vegan, I do recommend all kids consume dairy, if possible. Various studies associate dairy consumption with improved height, but kids may have to drink three cups a day to see a difference. Maternal dairy consumption during pregnancy is also associated with taller children. Moreover, we know that bone mineral density is lower in kids allergic to milk.
What Surprised Me: Some studies found that dairy protein, but not other animal or plant protein, was specifically associated with greater height. Within dairy, milk and yogurt, but not cheese, were tied to more growth. Other work showed benefits from broader animal protein, which suggests that different children may respond differently to specific protein sources and that dairy is one potential, but not the only, growth-supportive food.
Identify Growth-Affecting Conditions Early
If your child is dropping percentiles on the growth chart or is not meeting expected growth percentiles based on parental heights, discuss this with your pediatrician. Conditions like celiac disease, thyroid problems, chronic illnesses, some medications, growth hormone deficiency, and even gestational factors can all impact future growth.
Manage Chronic Stressors
Chronic stress can be mental or physical. Both can result in growth impairment. Obviously, this is often difficult to prevent. No one wants their child to have a chronic illness or endure psychological pain. I do try to offer resources to help and remind parents to tap into their communities to lighten their loads, because chronic conditions take their toll on your kids and on you. For your kid, this may look like seeing a therapist or dropping that extra AP class. For you, this may be not fighting in front of your kids or working with your kid’s coach to limit practices and tournaments.
Exercise
Exercise is important for bone and muscle health and is known to release growth hormone in kids, especially during puberty. While there are no studies confirming that exercise actually makes you grow taller, I nevertheless recommend exercise for healthy skeletal development throughout childhood (and mental, cardiopulmonary, immune health, and more).
Bottom Line
While genetics play a major role in height, you can help your kids by making sure they have time to sleep, eat well, have some dairy, get checked out if you have any medical concerns, and, last but certainly not least, have some fun, and maybe even play, which is always a great way to reduce stress.
Thank you for reading my human-generated articles! If you found this helpful or educational, please share, follow on your preferred platform, or subscribe below. For coaching or consultations, please contact me at www.DrAngel.com.
References:
Masanobu Kawai, Sachiko Baba, Kanami Tanigawa, Satoyo Ikehara, Ryo Kawasaki, Hiroyasu Iso, Association of Nighttime Sleep Duration at 1.5 Years With Height at 3 Years: The Japan Environment and Children’s Study, The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, Volume 110, Issue 6, June 2025, Pages e1866–e1873, https://doi.org/10.1210/clinem/dgae647
Jelenkovic, Aline et al. “Genetic and environmental influences on human height from infancy through adulthood at different levels of parental education.” Scientific reports vol. 10,1 7974. 14 May. 2020, doi:10.1038/s41598-020-64883-8
Arnesen, Erik Kristoffer et al. “Protein intake in children and growth and risk of overweight or obesity: A systematic review and meta-analysis.” Food & nutrition research vol. 66 10.29219/fnr.v66.8242. 21 Feb. 2022, doi:10.29219/fnr.v66.8242
Jen, Vincent et al. “Longitudinal association of dietary protein intake in infancy and adiposity throughout childhood.” Clinical nutrition (Edinburgh, Scotland) vol. 38,3 (2019): 1296-1302. doi:10.1016/j.clnu.2018.05.013
Switkowski, Karen M et al. “Maternal protein intake during pregnancy and linear growth in the offspring.” The American journal of clinical nutrition vol. 104,4 (2016): 1128-1136. doi:10.3945/ajcn.115.128421
Braun, Kim Ve et al. “Dietary Intake of Protein in Early Childhood Is Associated with Growth Trajectories between 1 and 9 Years of Age.” The Journal of nutrition vol. 146,11 (2016): 2361-2367. doi:10.3945/jn.116.237164
Berkey, Catherine S et al. “Dairy consumption and female height growth: prospective cohort study.” Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology vol. 18,6 (2009): 1881-7. doi:10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-08-1163
Francesca L. Crowe, M. Zulf Mughal, Zabihullah Maroof, Jacqueline Berry, Musa Kaleem, Sravya Abburu, Gijs Walraven, Mohammad I. Masher, Daniel Chandramohan, Semira Manaseki-Holland; Vitamin D for Growth and Rickets in Stunted Children: A Randomized Trial. Pediatrics January 2021; 147 (1): e20200815. 10.1542/peds.2020-0815
Farr, Joshua N et al. “Exercise, hormones and skeletal adaptations during childhood and adolescence.” Pediatric exercise science vol. 26,4 (2014): 384-91. doi:10.1123/pes.2014-0077
Bizzarri, C et al. “Exercise-induced GH secretion is related to puberty.” Journal of endocrinological investigation vol. 44,6 (2021): 1283-1289. doi:10.1007/s40618-020-01426-y
