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How do genes influence a person's potential adult height?

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Fetal growth — human development Growth of the human fetus from the fourth month to the ninth month of pregnancy.

Genetics plays a fundamental role in determining a person's potential adult height by establishing an upper limit for growth. Height is a polygenic trait, meaning it is influenced by the combined effects of more than 12,000 gene variations that serve as a biological blueprint for physical development, including bone length and cartilage formation.1

While genetics sets this potential, the actual height an individual reaches depends on the interplay between these inherited factors and environmental influences, such as nutrition, health, and hormonal regulation. For instance, hormones like growth hormone and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) regulate cell growth and bone elongation, while sex hormones during puberty influence the growth rate and signal when bones should stop growing.12

Because height is a complex trait influenced by many genes with small individual effects, it does not follow simple Mendelian inheritance patterns. Instead, a person's stature is the result of both their unique genetic endowment and the environmental conditions—such as access to consistent nutrition and healthcare—that allow them to realize their full biological potential.31