This Teen Is Almost 8 Feet Tall -- And Still Growing

At 7 feet 8 inches, Broc Brown definitely sticks out in a crowd, and he’s only going to get bigger. Brown’s family knew something was up at a young age: He was 5-foot-2 in kindergarten, according to his mother, Darci Elliot. “When he got into middle school he was around 6 feet tall, and by high school he was 7 feet tall,” Elliot told Barcroft TV. “It’s a genetic disorder and there’s nothing that can stop him from growing – I don’t know if he will ever stop.” Brown, 19, grows an astounding six inches a year because of a rare genetic disorder called Sotos syndrome, or cerebral gigantism. The condition reportedly affects 1 in 14,000 newborns, but the National Institutes of Health says the number may be closer to 1 in 5,000, since not everyone who has it is properly diagnosed. Kids with the syndrome tend to grow quickly in younger years and have unusually large heads, but their adult height is often in the normal range. That makes Brown a rarity among rarities. Other symptoms include attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and an explosive temper. Brown has both, his mother said. “When he gets mad, he’s mad. It wouldn’t take him two seconds to pop a hole in the wall ― it could be very dangerous if he wasn’t on medication and able to be calmed,” Elliot told Barcroft TV. “But overall, he is a big softie, his heart is as big as his body.” Brown is in cons...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news