Parents painstakingly strive to ensure their children have good health, but many find that their child's height seems problematic, yet they cannot pinpoint the reason. Let's briefly understand the factors that influence the height of a two-year-old infant.
Congenital Factors: Height is closely related to genetics, as growth in height is very consistent. Under the same social and economic conditions, the heritability of height is 0.75, meaning that 75% of an adult's height is determined by genetics, while only 25% is determined by the environment.
Nutritional Factors: Nutritional balance is crucial. Protein, fat, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and fiber are among the seven essential nutrients. Most importantly, water must not only be balanced but also sufficient. Lysine, zinc, and calcium are the most important among nutritional components. Lysine is a significant promoter of growth hormone secretion, zinc plays a crucial role in directly participating in DNA replication, and calcium is the primary functional component for bone growth and development. If calcium is deficient, an infant's bone development may become deformed, potentially preventing them from growing taller.
Sleep Factors: Growth hormone secretion is very high during sleep. Research shows that from 10 PM to 2 AM, growth hormone secretion peaks at these times. Some infants are short in stature, possibly due to relatively lower amounts of secreted growth hormone, mainly caused by poor sleep at night.
Exercise Factors: Exercise is very important for stimulating growth. Exercise can increase the value of epiphyseal chondrocyte and bone calcium deposition. This is what we need. Effective exercise should be the best method.
Additionally, when measuring an infant's height at home, if a measuring board is not available, you can also let the child lie on a table or wooden bed and attach a soft ruler to the edge of the table or bed. Place two pieces of cardboard on the top of the infant's head and the sole of their foot. The measurement method is the same as that used with a hospital measuring board. Read the length from the inside of the headboard to the inside of the footboard, which is the infant's length. When measuring length, note that the sole of the foot must be close to the baby's foot, rather than just measuring the toes, as this can make the measured length greater than the actual length.
