# What's a good adult height for a man? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 5, 2017, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144 "2017-06-05T00:27:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2017, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/81 "2017-06-15T12:59:41Z")
I’m about 6’'2" and I wish I were about an inch taller. I have no idea why but for me, 6’3" or even 6’4" seems ideal. That’s still pretty tall but without being freakishly tall. That said I guess my small frame makes 6’2" somehow work. FWIW, to the OP, there’s nothing wrong with being 5’7". I’ve seen plenty of women date shorter men, provided that they are still considered to be **masculine**. In almost all cases I can think of, the shorter men who have attractive women are muscular and athletic, not freakishly so but definitely above average in this regard. In addition to that, they are also usually charismatic and highly successful in their pursuits. If you’re worried about your sons ability to attract women, I’d head that off by helping your son develop into a ‘well-rounded’ adult. Encourage him to be physically fit and at the same time, push him to succeed academically and professionally. Help him find some hobbies and worthwhile pursuits. Whether he’s 6’7" or 5’7", nothing attracts the opposite sex more than success. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2017, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/82 "2017-06-15T13:37:06Z")
> [@SciFiSam](#): > > I’m confused. Doesn’t precocious puberty usually lead to shorter than average height? It does. Did you read my OP? > [@Weedy](#): > > Personally, I wouldn’t involve my kid too much in the decision. I’d talk about it a bit to explain what is going on, and see what kind of concerns he has, but I think the parents should make the decision in conjunction with his doctor, taking his preferences into account. It’s really hard for a 12yr old to imagine what it might be like to be different heights, and you can’t really guarantee the result anyway, so I wouldn’t want to put him in the position of feeling he has to make a decision he doesn’t understand and can’t control. Whatever height he ends up with is probably fine anyway. It’s probably not a huge determiner of his life outcomes. I’d be careful about putting it into his head that he might be the ‘wrong’ height. He has to know why he’s taking medication, if it comes to that. I have a feeling he will want to be around his Dad’s height (6’2) rather than someone who really stands out in a crowd. He likes to be like his Dad, and he is a little shy, but we might be surprised by what his opinion is. We are going to give the most weight to what his doctors think is appropriate, but we want him to know what’s going on, and to feel like he has some control. He is the one who will actually undergo any treatments, and will live with any consequences of whatever decision we make. He is ten & 1/2, not a toddler, but he still is a child. It’s a difficult balance to strike. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2017, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/83 "2017-06-16T12:51:18Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > It does. Did you read my OP? > He has to know why he’s taking medication, if it comes to that. I have a feeling he will want to be around his Dad’s height (6’2) rather than someone who really stands out in a crowd. He likes to be like his Dad, and he is a little shy, but we might be surprised by what his opinion is. > > We are going to give the most weight to what his doctors think is appropriate, but we want him to know what’s going on, and to feel like he has some control. He is the one who will actually undergo any treatments, and will live with any consequences of whatever decision we make. He is ten & 1/2, not a toddler, but he still is a child. It’s a difficult balance to strike. I did read your OP. I think most people are under the impression that intervention would make your son shorter, not taller. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2017, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/84 "2017-06-16T13:05:47Z")
> [@SciFiSam](#): > > I did read your OP. I think most people are under the impression that intervention would make your son shorter, not taller. We don’t know yet what intervention would do. The issue at hand is that he _may_ be entering puberty early, which will prevent him from reaching the height he is genetically destined to be. If this is the case, we have the choice of delaying puberty so he can reach his full height, or at least long enough so that he can reach, say 6’0. However, it might turn out that the verdict of the doctor is that he will reach his full height even if we don’t do anything, or that he will be ~6’0, even if we don’t do anything, in which case, we probably won’t do anything. The questions are these 1) if he’s in early puberty, is it “virulent” enough (for lack of a better word) to cause some of the other problems associated with early puberty, in which case we will probably intervene, and 2) would it take a full foot off his estimated genetic height, in which case we also might also intervene. ---
**Author:** ![minor7flat5](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/minor7flat5/32/258_2.png) [@minor7flat5](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/minor7flat5)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2017, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/85 "2017-06-16T15:19:20Z")
As a 6’3" guy in the morning, and 6’2" after the daily grind, I find this an optimal height. I would give consideration to the height where society’s infrastructure starts to be a problem (after health and medical necessity are considered). Tall guys hit their heads on things all the time, and we can’t buy shoes in shoe stores. I can only imagine that someone much taller then me must be constantly contorting themselves to fit in cars, sit in airplane seats, walk in low-ceiling basements and so on. There was a house my wife and I considered buying that had a beautiful basement, perfect for me to set up a wood shop–indeed, the prior owner had set it up with all kinds of racks for storing his wood. But the ceiling was 6’ and I constantly had to slouch to avoid hitting the ceiling. We didn’t buy that house. I wouldn’t like to encounter these kinds of situations frequently. ETA: I see others have covered the airplane-seat angle…it’s annoying when someone comes along to post something that was already discussed up-thread, and doesn’t recognize the previous contributions. Sorry! ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Gay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ab097/32.png) [@Enola\_Gay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Gay)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2017, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/86 "2017-06-16T15:57:35Z")
Doctors are terrible at predicting height. My daughter was always off the charts in the height category–at least a head taller than the tallest kid in her class…up until 5th grade that is. She got her period and was only 5’ 2". Doctor said she would only grow another inch, but now she’s in 8th grade and is 5’ 7" and possibly still growing. Our son, on the other hand, was always small for his age group (25th-30th percentile) & hit puberty around 13 at 5’5". He is now 6’1" at 18 years old. I agree with your husband to just let it be. ---
**Author:** ![constanze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@constanze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/constanze)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2017, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/87 "2017-06-16T16:04:13Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > I have dated men of all different heights, including one who was shorter than I was, but I know that some women think the man has to be taller. I don’t want my son to come to me when he’s 5’6 and got rejected by a woman who was 5’7, and ask “Why did you do this to me?” Are you planning on teaching your son to look for an adult woman, a Partner, where they both love each other - or are you teaching your son to look for a dumb Girl? Because I can imagine a dumb Teenager at 15 saying “That Girl rejected me because I’m shorter than the good-looking other guy, I’m heartbroken, my life is at an end” - because he’s a dumb teen, and Girls are dumb at that Age, too. You can’t avert that, though: a dumb teen Girl can reject him because he has pimples, or a funny hair cut or is uncool for liking Soccer/ the wrong Music band… If your son is a grown man and gets rejected by a woman for his height - then he dodged a bullet, that’s not a woman, that’s a dumb Girl. > [@](#): > > More importantly, did you involve your son in the decision? We both at least agree that we are going to tell are son what is going on. Ultimately, if the doctor says that one thing or another is in his best interests, we will probably go with that, but we will give a lot of weight to what our son wants. He is pretty thoughtful and rational for his age. I’m not a parent, but at Age 10, he has understanding. Unless it’s an emergency or a Baby, the Patient should always be informed as much as possible to his understanding, and should be involved in the decision-making process. The difficult part in medical decisions is often that it’s not clear-cut, but rather the doctor says “there’s a 70% Chance that Treatment A is better than not doing anything, but there’s a 20% Chance of the following side effects. If we don’t do anything, there’s a 65% Chance of These side effects. If we use therapy B, there’s a50% Chance of success, with 55 % Chance of a third set of side effects”. So no matter what you - with your son or over his head - choose, you can end up regretting it. Accept that beforehand, so there will be no guilt-slinging “Why did you choose to ruin his/ my life?” - you are taking a gamble, not a guarantee. ---
**Author:** ![eclectic\_wench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ac91a4/32.png) [@eclectic\_wench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eclectic_wench)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2017, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/88 "2017-06-16T21:51:31Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > We don’t know yet what intervention would do. > > The issue at hand is that he _may_ be entering puberty early, which will prevent him from reaching the height he is genetically destined to be. If this is the case, we have the choice of delaying puberty so he can reach his full height, or at least long enough so that he can reach, say 6’0. > > However, it might turn out that the verdict of the doctor is that he will reach his full height even if we don’t do anything, or that he will be ~6’0, even if we don’t do anything, in which case, we probably won’t do anything. > > The questions are these 1) if he’s in early puberty, is it “virulent” enough (for lack of a better word) to cause some of the other problems associated with early puberty, in which case we will probably intervene, and 2) would it take a full foot off his estimated genetic height, in which case we also might also intervene. I think you’re wayyyyyy overthinking this. Even if he is entering puberty, as someone else has pointed out, 10 and 8 months isn’t precocious puberty, it’s just a bit on the early side. According to the [Mayo Clinic](http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/precocious-puberty/home/ovc-20265997), precocious puberty in boys means before the age of 9. He’s nowhere near that. This means that he’s not at heightened risk of any of the health problems associated with precocious puberty. Because he’s not going through precocious puberty. Also, age of puberty is part of his genetic ‘destiny’: if entering puberty now means he’s shorter than he would otherwise have been, then that shorter height is in fact what he’s ‘genetically destined to be’. If you want him to end up the height that nature intended, then the way to achieve that is to leave him to grow as nature intends. Also, it’s not like you’re talking about an extreme of shortness that rises to the level of a handicap. It’s not like you have reason to believe that without intervention he’ll be 4 foot 7 (in which case, yeah, I would intervene). You’re just talking about the possibility that he’ll be on the short side of normal. There’s nothing at all catastrophic about this. It doesn’t have health risks. It’s not going to make day-to-day living difficult. Personally I’d worry more about the possibility of him being 6 foot 7, which from what little I know does have health risks. Also, there is no reliable mathematical formula to predict height. Sometimes the predictions are right, often they’re fairly close to right, sometimes they’re way off. You’re supposed to be able to calculate adult height by some formula involving height at two and a half or something: I was exactly average height all through childhood, now I’m a shortarse. Throw in medical intervention and all bets really are off. You have absolutely no way of knowing for sure what height he’ll be if he starts puberty at any given age. Also, intervention has side effects. Personally, there is no way I’d risk those side effects just because of the possibility that maybe my kid might be a little on the short side, specially given that there’s no reliable way to predict what height he’ll be either with or without intervention. I would leave this completely alone and let him grow up into whoever he grows up into. ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2017, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/89 "2017-06-17T01:25:32Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > So we do things like buy whole milk for him, and skim for ourselves. This could be the cause of what you’re seeing. There are multiple studies linking body fat to early puberty in girls, and some indicating the same happens to boys who are overweight. That said, almost 11 isn’t unusual to start seeing signs of puberty. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2017, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/90 "2017-06-18T11:08:06Z")
> [@Barbarian](#): > > This could be the cause of what you’re seeing. There are multiple studies linking body fat to early puberty in girls, and some indicating the same happens to boys who are overweight. > > That said, almost 11 isn’t unusual to start seeing signs of puberty. He’s not fat. He needs extra calories because he’s growing so fast. ETA: He’s 10 & 1/2 now, but he’s been showing signs of puberty for a while. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2017, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/91 "2017-06-18T23:53:17Z")
My brother and his wife are the same height. They’ve been married for thirty-some years. OP, if a woman rejects someone (or if a man rejects someone) because of their height, then the rejected person is better off without them. My grandmother was two inches taller than my grandfather when they married. (He then grew four inches, but that’s another story.) ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2017, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/92 "2017-06-19T03:21:19Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Being really tall can be a problem. Fitting into cars, bumping your head etc. > > I wouldn’t want to be over 6’ 4". > > The ideal for a man is between 5’ 10" to 6’ 1" > > It seems a bit odd picking your height. That used to be something nature did for you. I was going to say that the ideal height is probably more like 6’0" to somewhere around 6’2"- just a couple of inches taller than your measurement. Basically tall enough to be considered “tall” by societal standards, but not so tall that height-related inconveniences come into play. In that height range I mentioned, you’d wear normal clothes, fit in normal cars, airplane seats, etc… but you’d still be considered tall by everyone. For people taller than you, it’s more of a matter of degree, not whether you’re actually tall or not, which isn’t the case at 5’10". (so says the 6’ 0.5" tall guy) ---
**Author:** ![femmejean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/0ea827/32.png) [@femmejean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/femmejean)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2017, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/93 "2017-06-19T04:26:20Z")
As a young adult guy who’s quite short 5ft 4in and looks very young, I’ve had some very awkward encounters with younger and taller teen girls especially when they see me drinking. I do remember a time when a 5ft 9in attractive 15yr old girl who looked like 18-19 gave me a hug thinking I was a cute boy crushing on her when in reality I’m 19. ---
**Author:** ![RivkahChaya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rivkahchaya/32/8919_2.png) [@RivkahChaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RivkahChaya)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2017, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/94 "2017-07-23T08:24:26Z")
OK. I’m awake, and it doesn’t look like I’m going back to sleep, so I’ll post about the doctor’s appointment we recently had. This is the first chance I’ve had to sit down and write a long post. We had a hand x-ray done, had some blood drawn, and saw an endocrinologist. The hand x-ray suggests that our son will be _6’8_. However, the endo doesn’t think he’ll be quite that tall, because he says that most boys with that genetic potential don’t get to be fully that tall. The blood work suggests that our son is on the brink of puberty, but isn’t far enough along that puberty-blocking drugs would stop it-- on the other hand, he doesn’t have enough hormones in his system that they will interfere with his growth. The fact that he looks pubertal is a combination of his height, the fact that he is thin but muscular, and the fact that both DH and I tend to be, well, kinda hairy. The doctor told my husband not to shave the day of the appointment, so he could see how heavy his beard was, and he looked at the hair on our arms, and said our son’s precocious facial hair was related to puberty, but it looked like more than it was, if that makes sense, because of his genes. He said the boychik would probably have a pretty heavy beard as an adult. He does have very thick hair on his head, too. So he has some hormones in his system, but not a lot. The endo thinks he will be in puberty around 12, and if he keeps growing like he’s been growing, he’ll be about 5’7 then. He could have a six inch growth spurt, and grow three or four more inches after that, ending up 6’4 or 6’5. I’m a lot happier about 6’4-5 than I am about 6’8. I’m also happy that he’ll be in jr. high for puberty, not elementary school. I think it’s great that he won’t need any medication as well. I’m very happy with the way things turned out. Usually, you don’t get such good news from the doctor. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2017, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/95 "2017-07-23T09:05:44Z")
> [@RivkahChaya](#): > > he looked at the hair on our arms, and said our son’s precocious facial hair was related to puberty, but it looked like more than it was, if that makes sense, because of his genes. It makes perfect sense. I’m a brunette, my cousin is a copperhead - well, copper-everything. We are the same age and our “fur” has always been equally thick, but unless you look closely you’d swear her forearms are hairless and mine were stolen from a grizzly. I’m glad things are looking good. ---
**Author:** ![Anita\_Dayoff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Anita\_Dayoff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anita_Dayoff)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2017, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/96 "2017-07-23T15:10:14Z")
Struck up a conversation with a 6’8" stranger a couple of weeks ago in a grocery store about height since there aren’t a lot of people I look up to. Turned out we both appreciate the advantages height gives. ---
**Author:** ![Kadmos1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/13edae/32.png) [@Kadmos1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kadmos1)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2017, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144/97 "2017-07-24T15:11:25Z")
I will be 31 on 9/4 and am just under 6’3. Weight wise, I shift between 200-210 lbs. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-a-good-adult-height-for-a-man/788144.md?page=4)