The average height for 17 year olds is probably the question most parents are concerned about. Will children grow taller at this age and beyond? This article will tell you that.
When a child enters puberty, their body undergoes numerous changes. As a result, parents should monitor their children’s growth and development. As many people are aware, both little boys and girls reach puberty at around the same time. For both genders, this can range between 8 and 14 years old. Depending on a variety of conditions, kids may begin it sooner or later.
Here you can see during adolescence for your kids, the difference in height is among the most notable things. It is usual for children’s heights to expand dramatically at this time. But by the time they start the age of 16, when puberty is nearly complete, their height will have increased only slightly each year.
So, what is the average height for 17 year olds? Is there a significant height increase by this age or not? Let’s find out together in this post.
Is Delayed Puberty A Time Of Considerable Growth?
Boys don’t seem like they will be able to grow anymore when they turn 16 years old, according to several research. If yes, the height increase they can gain each year is much smaller during their puberty. Accordingly, teen boys can grow at an amazing rate during adolescence (typically in terms of height). But when they turn 17 years old, there is only a little increase in height, which is approx. 1-2 inches (or 2.54-5.08 centimeters) each year. Sometimes, they don’t even reach this small height gain because they reach adulthood by this age.
The same applies to teen girls. Moreover, little girls even start puberty much earlier than teen boys (which is true for almost all cases). As such, when they reach 17 years old, teen girls barely grow in height (including changes in weight and appearance) because they may have ended puberty a few years earlier when they are 17.
How Does Adolescent Development Change As They Enter Puberty?
As stated before, all boys and girls endure a growth spurt (typically in height) when they start puberty. Their body will start to change a lot, especially in weight and height. Of course, there are a lot of differences, but this article will be about teenagers’ height. Also, kids’ growth rate will be significantly influenced by a wide variety of factors.
Generally speaking, the growth rate varies depending on genders, of course. In addition, the time your kid begins puberty also determines how much height they can gain. Nonetheless, girls tend to be taller faster than boys during the first stage of puberty. This is because they start puberty far earlier than boys, usually between the age of 8 and 10 years old.
However, boys are more likely to grow afterward as if to make up for the late onset of puberty significantly. But when it comes to average height increase, teen boys gain much more than teen girls. In particular, the average height gain for teen girls is only 2.54-5.08 centimeters or 1-2 inches, while it is up to 7.62 centimeters or 3 inches for teen boys.
In any circumstance, there are, of course, exceptions. For a better understanding, look at the following graphs of average height for 17 year olds boys and girls.
Average Height For 17 Years Old Boys
The average height for a 17-year-old boy is approximately 5′ 7″ (175.2 cm). Boys grow at different rates and the average is just that – an average. Most boys will have stopped growing by 17, but a small percentage will continue to grow into their late teens or even early twenties.
Related: Height to Weight Charts of Teens
Average Height For 17 Years Old Girls
For an average height 17 years old girl, they can be between 5’3” (162.5 cm). Girls generally grow around 2 inches per year during puberty, with their growth spurt reaching its peak between the ages of 11 and 14. However, there is a lot of variation: Some girls start growing very early and finish late, while others grow steadily throughout puberty.
For girls, let’s take a look at this chart to know their average height at the age of 17.
Most of the time, teen boys tend to enter puberty later than teen girls. As such, they tend to be shorter and have not many changes in weight at the early phase of puberty. Nonetheless, at the age of 17 years old, both teen boys and girls are considered to finish their puberty. Therefore, it doesn’t seem to have any changes in height. If yes, it might be very little increase annually.
However, you should not make your decision only on these average heights, as they provide no insight into your adolescent’s health. Of course, being able to determine if your children are lower than the recommended height is that “standard suggested height.” The following are some of the considerations that could influence their growth rate.
What Factors Influence the Rate of Height Increase in Adolescents?
As already mentioned, puberty is considered among the most important elements affecting adolescents’ height. However, according to some research, there are many more factors that can make changes to your teenagers’ height.
Some gender and growth hormones are among the most striking elements. In addition, if your kids have to suffer from any thyroid problems or insulin levels, their height will also be influenced. Your genetic issue is another big deal when it comes to your teen’s height during puberty.
If your kids have been malnourished during their childhood, the chances are high that their height can be affected later on. In this case, the weight issue is also another important thing to keep in mind, typically kids who are overweight or obese.
Final Thoughts
To conclude, the average height for 17 year olds boys and girls is 69.0 inches or 175.2 centimeters and 64.0 inches or 162.5 centimeters, respectively. As you might see, there is not much change in height when kids reach the age of 17 as they are more likely to end puberty at this age.
But you should note that these are just the suggested average height for teenagers. They can not be 100% exact since a lot of other factors impact this height. So, don’t worry if your kids are a little bit shorter than this recommended figure. It is more important for them to grow healthily eventually.
