How Hgh Influences Height In Children

Reading Time: 2 minutes

 

Transcript

 

Speaker 1

More parents than ever are treating their kids with growth hormone in the hopes that they'll become taller adults. But is it in a child's best interest? And how can you know? Gene Anderson looks at the issue in today's KING5 Children's Health link.

 

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Today, 9 year old Sabrina Lester plays confidently with her teammates. But her parents remember a time when they were worried about her physical health and her self esteem. At age 6, she matched a four year old in height and her first grade friends towered over her.

 

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She had already told us that the kids in her class called her baby and were already beginning to point her out as different from them and unusual.

 

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Though doctors cannot always find the cause, a child's growth can be charted to spot trouble. And Sabrina had simply quit growing. That's when the Lesters turned to doctor GAIL Richards at Seattle Children's Hospital. The paediatric endocrinologist says kids can quit growing for a number of reasons, and he's.

 

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Any sort of significant medical illness in any system of the child's body, the heart, the lungs, the intestines, any one of those things can cause a problem that affects growth.

 

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This treatment, a synthetic growth hormone, has helped a lot of kids grow taller, with few side effects. Doctor Richard suggested it for Sabrina, who now takes daily injections.

 

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Sometimes it hurt, sometimes it does. When sometimes it bleeds, sometimes it doesn't.

 

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A study at Children's Hospital is tracking her growth. And so is she.

 

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This used to be how tall you were, just a couple of years ago.

 

Speaker 5

It was this tall I like. Hi.

 

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More and more parents are seeking growth hormone treatment for kids who are short. Dr Richards acknowledges. Our society rewards height. If you were to bet during an election on the taller candidate, statistically you'd be ahead. But there's a caution. Researchers wonder if growth hormones could lead to leukaemia or other cancer later in.

 

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Life and right now there is no evidence of that, but it would also be fair to say that we haven't followed people for 50 years.

 

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Dean Lester says in the end, the benefits to Sabrina's health outweigh the risks and her self esteem has blossomed.

 

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Random times every day somebody will just come up to me and say you look way taller than you did in first grade. I'm like cool.

 

Speaker 2

Parents could find this information reassuring in some new studies. Short people say they don't think their height affects their quality of life. For KING5 Children's Health link, I'm Gene Anderson.

 

Speaker 1

Growth hormone treatment is expensive. It can run more than $20,000 a year. And it's often not covered by health insurance. To find out more on this issue, visit ourwebsite@king5.com.

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