Can Milk Help a Person Grow Taller?

Q. A boy in his early teens writes that be has read that if three times a day he would drink a glass of milk to which two drops of iodine are added he would grow taller. He wonders whether this is true or whether an operation w o u l d be necessary to make him gain height.

I get many similar letters: The milk will help him grow but will not in any way modify; his normal growth pattern and the iodine will not help at all. Since there are several causes for short stature he should first find out what cause accounts for his lack of height. Some slow starters make unexpectedly rapid gains in their late teens! Without any treatment at all. I certainly would not advise an operation. Human growth hormone stimulates growth in hormone-deficient dwarfs but is of no use in boys who do not fit this category. Others between the ages of 3 and 17 have increased their rate of growth by taking the hormone, Oxandrolone, but this should be done only under medical supervision. One should always remember that being short has its own special advantages at times.

By WAYNE G. BRANDSTADT, M.D
For The Odessa American
May 12th, 1969

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