In order to grow taller, they actually "broke" their legs?

Recently, topics such as "A young man spent hundreds of thousands of yuan to break his bones to increase his height, but ended up with lifelong disability" and "A woman spent 600,000 yuan to break her bones to increase her height, but ended up with a disease" have continued to dominate the search. Not only is it heartbreaking, it has also sparked widespread discussion about "height anxiety" in society.

Image source: Internet

What is "bone heightening surgery"?

Limb lengthening, medically known as limb lengthening, is a biological principle that limb tissue can regenerate under certain stress stimulation . Through orthopedic osteotomy, the closed bone growth line is reopened at the patient's calf or thigh, and a limb lengthening device with a stretching effect is installed outside the body to slowly lengthen the limb to achieve the purpose of height increase. This surgery was first used by Soviet orthopedic surgeon Ilizarov to treat patients with limb bone deformities and defects, especially for patients with unequal length of lower limbs after polio, and the treatment effect is remarkable.

This type of surgery carries great risks . First, the bones need to be sawed and forcibly lengthened during the operation, which may cause damage to the nerves, blood vessels, muscles, and skin of the legs. If the steel needle is not thoroughly disinfected or placed improperly, it may cause infection, perforation, or even osteomyelitis, and in severe cases may lead to disability. Secondly, the speed of limb lengthening must be strictly controlled. Too rapid lengthening may cause damage to the nerves and blood vessels in the legs, causing nerve paralysis and blood supply disorders, and then cause necrosis of the lower limbs, and even require amputation. In addition, there is also the risk of nonunion and aplastic anemia. If the physical examination before surgery is neglected, the consequences will be disastrous.

Image source: CCTV

As early as 2006, the former Ministry of Health issued the "Notice on the Strict Management of Limb Lengthening Surgery", which clearly stipulated that the indications for the implementation of this technology in my country are bone defects or limb length inequality caused by congenital malformations, trauma, tumors, infections, etc., as well as limb deformities caused by diseases, and it is strictly prohibited to use it in medical cosmetic projects.

Why would you try to increase height by breaking bones when you know there are risks? Can adults still grow taller?

Behind these shocking cases of failed height-increasing attempts at bone-breaking reflect the social problems of "body anxiety" and "height anxiety". It seems that a good man must be "seven feet tall" and a beautiful woman must be "nine heads tall". Height has gradually become one of the criteria for career choices, social status and even mate selection. It is generally believed that people will no longer grow taller after puberty. Coupled with the misleading influence of illegal organizations and advertisements, these people blindly pursue the wrong ways of growing taller.

An important criterion for judging whether one can grow taller after adulthood is whether the bones can "grow longer" . Take the long bones of our lower limbs, thighs and calves as an example (of course, the length of the lower limbs does play a vital role in the composition of human height): the long section in the middle of the long bone is called the backbone, and the cartilage part at both ends of the bone is called the epiphysis. During the growth and development process, chondrocytes continue to divide, proliferate, and ossify, making the long bones gradually longer, thereby promoting the growth of height. With the increase of age, after the long bones mature, the epiphysis will gradually ossify and fuse with the backbone to form a closed epiphyseal line. Once the epiphyseal line is closed, the bones lose the ability to continue to grow, and the height is basically fixed . No matter how much milk you drink, how high or long you jump, or how hard you sleep, you will not grow taller.

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The most accurate way to know whether you can still grow taller is to go to the hospital for an X-ray, especially an X-ray of the wrist or knee joint. By observing the closure of the epiphyseal line, you can determine whether the bone still has room to grow.

However, our height growth is a dynamic process, with genetic factors accounting for about 70%, and is also affected by multiple factors such as nutrition and health, lifestyle (sleep, exercise, etc.), psychology, hormone levels, etc. If we adopt a reasonable diet structure and exercise moderately, and maintain a good emotional state, we can promote the secretion of growth hormone and grow taller in our twenties.

Grow taller scientifically and seize the two " golden growth periods "

Adolescence is the period of fastest bone growth in the body. Last year, the National Health Commission released the latest "Growth Standards for Children Under 7 Years Old", which raised the height standards for children of some age groups. This has caused many parents to start worrying about their children's height, and they have tried many folk remedies in order to grow 1 cm taller.

Height is not entirely determined by genetics. Even if parents are not tall, through good nutrition, a healthy lifestyle and appropriate medical intervention, the child's height may exceed the average of the parents. Conversely, if the parents are tall but the child encounters adverse factors such as illness during growth, he or she may not reach the height determined by genetic potential.

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There is indeed a "golden growth period" for height growth, and children's height growth has two obvious peaks:

(1) Infancy : From birth to 1 year old, this is the period of fastest height growth in life, with an average growth of about 25 cm.

(2) Puberty : This is another peak period of height growth, usually between 9 and 14 years old for girls and 10 to 15 years old for boys. The total height increase during puberty is about 20 to 25 cm for girls and about 25 to 28 cm for boys.

During these two golden growth periods, parents should pay special attention to their children's nutrition, exercise and sleep to support their children's healthy growth in height. For example, ensure that children get enough sleep, as growth hormone is mainly secreted at night; eat a balanced diet to ensure adequate intake of nutrients such as protein, calcium and vitamin D; and encourage children to participate in sports, especially jumping sports, to promote bone health and growth.

In addition, parents should regularly monitor their children's height growth. The most direct and simple method is to record the child's height curve . Record the child's height every 3 months or so. If the growth rate is found to be lower than the normal range, such as less than 7 cm per year before the age of 2, less than 5 cm per year from the age of 5 to puberty, or less than 6 cm per year during puberty, you should seek advice from professional medical institutions in a timely manner. Do not blindly buy "height-increasing drugs" or "growth injections". Blind pursuit of height increase will affect the normal growth pattern of the child. For those who are indeed in need of growth hormone injections after evaluation by a doctor, it is recommended to go to the hospital for treatment, conduct a comprehensive evaluation and decide whether to intervene, and strictly follow the doctor's orders for treatment and monitoring.

Only by looking at the height issue rationally and promoting height growth through scientific methods rather than blindly pursuing extreme means can we have a healthy life.

Author: Li Nannan, member of the China Science Writers Association, expert on popular science in China

Reviewer: Tang Qin, Deputy Secretary-General of the Expert Committee of the Chinese Medical Association, Senior Researcher, National Health Science Expert

Produced by: Science Popularization China