Many people wonder if height growth pills really work. Parents wonder if they can give children pills and supplements to help them grow taller. Adults also wonder if they themselves can grow taller after 21, by taking height supplements or doing crazy exercises and stretches. In this post, we will take a look and see the actual science behind height growth pills, and determine if they can help you grow taller at your specific age.
Do Height Growth Pills Work for Children and Teenagers?
First, let’s begin by probing into how height growth pills can work for children and teenagers. In order for bones to grow in length, they need to be fueled with proper nutrients in order to reach their maximum potential in length. In fact, a recent study from the American Academy of Pediatrics showed that 70% of U.S. adolescents are lacking nutrients essential to bone growth, and recommend that pediatricians encourage them to increase their daily intake of Calcium and Vitamin D containing foods and beverages (2).
So to put simply: if you want your child to grow to his full potential height, he needs to consume sufficient levels of nutrients that will fuel his bones for maximum growth. And since it’s common for many children and adolescents to lack these essential nutrients from the foods they consume, this is where supplements can come into play. By allowing your children to consume supplements that provide proper nutrients for bone growth, they can reach their full potential height. We will discuss exactly what these nutrients are later in this post.
Do Height Growth Pills Work for Adults?
Many people wonder: can I still grow taller at 30? You may have heard that adult cannot increase their height after the growth plates close (3). However, it is possible to still grow by 1 to 2 inches even after your growth plates close. How? By maximizing the length of your spine.
You may be wondering how it’s possible to lengthen your spine if your growth plates are closed. To understand how this is possible, it’s important to remember that your spinal discs are not the same as the growth plates on your bones since they can fluctuate in length (4). If you’re wondering why you are slightly taller in the morning than at night, this is exactly why; your spine discs fluctuate in length. So the key is to maximize the disc length in your spine if you want to maximize your height as an adult.
So how do you increase the length of your discs in your spine? By increasing the hormones that are produce in your pituitary gland. When your pituitary gland produces a hormone known as growth factor 1 (5), it not only promotes bone growth during childhood and puberty, but also facilitates the lubrication of your cartilage discs (6). Therefore, the key is to stimulate this mechanism in your body, if you want to maximize your height as an adult. By doing so, it is possible to grow up to 1 to 2 inches as an adult.
Which Nutrients Are Essential for Height Growth?
For children and teenagers, the best height growth pills are pills that contain nutrients that facilitate bone growth. Here are the following nutrients that fuel your bones for proper growth and health (7):
- L-Arginine
- L-Ornithine
- Vitamin D
- Vitamin C
- Calcium
- Potassium
- Magnesium
For adults, they need to consume nutrients that will facilitate the release of hormones from their pituitary. To optimize this mechanism in the body, the need to consume the following amino acids (8, 9):
- L-Arginine
- L-Lysine
- L-Ornithine
- L-Glutamine
- L-Glycine
Nutrients that are important for keeping the bones healthy (such as Calcium and Vitamin D3) are beneficial, but won’t directly help adults grow taller since their growth plates are closed. Remember, the key is to focus on maximizing the length of your discs.
What Are Height Growth Pills That Really Work?
At this point, you might be wonder then, what are the top 10 height growth pills that are guaranteed to work? While there are no pills, supplements, or medicines that are guaranteed to make you taller, there are supplements that you or your child can take in order to maximize your chances.
The best supplements are the ones with single nutrients only. The reason why these supplements are effective is because it is evident how much of the nutrient is in the pill. The problem with branded pills is that many of them are not transparent about how much of each nutrient they contain. But with single-nutrient supplements, there is no ambiguity.
Now, if you are interested in products that contain a blend of the height growth nutrients mentioned above, here are some of the most well-known supplements you can find:
- Peak Height Height Maximizer
- Silver Peaks Height Growth
- Pure Height Plus
- Nubest Tall
- Stand Tall Growth Pills
Are Height Growth Pills Actually Safe?
If you take pills & supplements with single nutrients, they should be safe as long as you’re not allergic to those nutrients. In fact, they may provide many health benefits, since most people usually don’t consume sufficient amount of these nutrients from their foods (as mentioned previously in the article).
When it comes to branded pills and supplements that contain a combination of these nutrients however, make sure to check all of the ingredients, and consult with your doctor before you or your child starts taking them, so that you can prevent any unwanted risks, symptoms, or side effects. If the supplement is also FDA approved, that is a bonus factor that you can count on.
What Are Other Ways to Increase Height Naturally?
The bulk of this post focused on the nutritional aspect of growing taller. But if you want your child to maximize his or her height, it is also important to nail other factors, such as going to sleep early, getting proper amounts of exercise, and sticking to a nutritious diet plan (10).
If you are an adult looking to increase your height, it is also important for you to sleep punctually, and get enough exercise regularly. Optimizing your nutrition is also important, since it will keep your bones healthier, and it will prevent height loss as you age. Lastly, you can also improve your posture to look taller (3).
