A latest sample survey shows that 60 percent of the Shanghai teenagers are not satisfied with their heights, but nearly 20 percent of them stop height growth in their adolescence age.

Experts warn that eating too much junk food, fruit and vegetables fertilized by hormone as well as calcium products would influence the height increase of junior high and high school students.

The survey was jointly conducted by the Shanghai Physics Sciences Research Institute and Shanghai Municipal Teenagers Health Evaluation Center. Its result also indicates that many parents seem to know very little about what kind of food they should choose for their kids.

Professor Jiang Jinjin with the Changhai Hospital Attached to the Shanghai No.2 Military Hospital pointed out that in a big city like Shanghai, which is flooded with high-calorie, high-fat foods, it's very likely that children take fast food, such as hamburger, in an out-of-control way. As a result, obesity occurs to many of them. In addition, Professor Jiang pointed out, many extremely large fruits and vegetables are possibly to have been fertilized by hormone, which may cause children's premature and at the same time block the growth hormone from reaching its due climax. Consequently, the affected teenagers will stop growing in height. Meanwhile, blind calcium assimilation may lead to a kid's early epiphysis and calcification.

Dr. Zhang with the Shanghai Municipal Teenagers Health Evaluation Center said those who stop growing earlier usually show little difference from normal children at the early age. But as time goes by, the height gap between them and the normal ones may eventually reach some 10 cm, or even 20 cm. Yet at the beginning, the difference in height is often ignored by parents. In normal cases, a man reaches his growth climax at the age of 14-15 and stops growing at 20-24. The growth climax comes earlier for women.

Prof. Jiang stressed that the earlier discovery of the abnormal height growth, the better effect of the treatment. "If one misses the time for best treatment, it will add the cost and difficulty," he said. He added that if a child above 4 grows less than 4.5 cm a year, he or she should have the growth hormone and epiphysis checked.

(China.org.cn by Guo Xiaohong December 30, 2003)