Age plays an important role in how our bones grow and change. There are two main stages: childhood and adulthood.

1. Childhood and Adolescence:

• In the first 20 years of life, our bones grow rapidly. This happens because of two main spots in the bones called ossification centers.
• Most people reach their strongest bones, called peak bone mass, by age 30. About 90% of the bone mass we have as adults is formed by the time we are in our late teens.
• During these teenage years, bones can grow longer by about 10-15% during big growth spurts.

2. The Ossification Process:

• There are two main ways our bones develop: intramembranous and endochondral ossification.
• Intramembranous ossification happens in flat bones, and it is very active during the first year of life.
• Endochondral ossification is more about the long bones and continues as we grow into adults.

3. Adulthood:

• After reaching peak bone mass around age 30, the process starts to change. Our bodies may lose more bone than we create.
• Research shows that women can lose about 0.5-1% of their bone mass each year after menopause. Men start losing about 0.5% of their bone mass after age 50.
• This can make it easier to break bones.

Understanding how bone growth changes through life is very important. It helps us find ways to prevent conditions like osteoporosis and keep our bones healthy.