Can exercises and supplements help you grow taller?

An article that dispells the myths surrounding exercise and supplements as they pertain to growing taller and advises what does help.

The question of whether or not there are particular exercises or dietary supplements that will help you grow taller is not an easy one to answer. The closest thing to a correct answer is “it depends”. There are several other factors that play a roll as to whether exercise or supplements will actually make you taller or not. How old you are plays perhaps the biggest role in answering this question, though your general diet and health also play key roles.

Let’s start with exercise. There are websites and books abound that claim to have the secret exercises that will make you grow taller. They advertise growth of anywhere from one to several inches, sometimes in a very short amount of time. Beware of these sites! Many are trying to get you to subscribe to a program or buy a book or supplement. That said, the exercises they list may be beneficial in helping you APPEAR taller.

The other half of the question regards supplements. The word “supplements” is a wide-ranging term that can mean vitamins, herbal supplements and even doctor-prescribed hormones. Just like exercise, supplements will only help you grow taller if you take them as a child. Calcium is the best-known supplement for promoting bone growth. But there are other common vitamins that will help as well, such as vitamins A, D and E. These vitamins help preserve bone mass as you age, which helps to preserve your height. But they don’t actually make you grow any taller. Likewise, no herbal supplement has ever been clinically proven to increase your height either.

The true grey area when it comes to supplements and growth is known as HGH, or Human Growth Hormone. There are many supplements that claim to have HGH-like affects. But the only HGH that will help anything comes from a doctor, and is usually only prescribed for certain medical conditions. Human Growth Hormone has many side-effects that can be damaging, particularly if used incorrectly. Doctors generally only use it when no other drug therapy has worked, and even then only on children. The number of instances of prescription for adults is rare. It is also important to note that HGH will not just help you grow in height, but in width and weight as well. More weight makes you appear shorter, which would negate the affects of any added height.

In closing, genetics is truly the biggest factor as to how tall you will be. In childhood, vitamins, a well-rounded diet and exercise do help you grow. In adulthood, continuing these things will help you retain your height, but not actually add to it. Of course, eating well and exercising is good not just for retaining height, but also for your overall health. This alone should be reason enough to put these into your daily routine, height or no height.