Posted on 05/02/2014 3:41:15 PM PDT by blam
Humans Grew More Than 4 Inches In The Last 100 Years
The Conversation
Tim Hatton, University of Essex, The Conversation
May 2, 2014, 5:02 PM
It is a commonplace for children to be taller than their parents, but four generations ago this wasn’t the case. A recent study of soldiers around the age of 20 who enlisted in the army during World War I revealed an average height of five feet six inches (168cm). Today the average for young men is five feet ten inches (178cm).
A gain of four inches seems a lot. But it is not unique to Britain; similar gains have been found in a range of western countries even though the timing differs. Over a slightly earlier period the Danes and the Spanish grew by about five inches while the French, the Italians and the Swedes grew by around four inches.
Shooting up: increase in heights over 100 years in centimetres.
Yet in the longer span of history this is quite unprecedented. Economic historians have uncovered evidence on heights all the way back to the middle ages in order to chart what they call the biological standard of living. Across the generations there were ups and downs in height, but there is nothing like the four-inch gain of the past century.
If adult height reflects nutrition during childhood then we have a sensitive indicator of living standards. The 20th century saw dramatic improvements in diet. The quantity of food intake increased and its quality improved, as incomes rose faster than ever before. But in some countries economic historians have found that during the early stages of industrialisation average heights fell at the same time
(snip)
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
And so it began for the dinosaurs.
Tracks with CO2.
I once saw a photograph of John Browning posing with officials from Belgium’s FN factory. It almost looked like he was standing with midgets.
Last night I grew more than...........................
1. Global warming
2. Bush’s fault
3. Morning wood fairy
/johnny
100 years? I thought it was “over 4 hours”.
I think they are underestimating the growth. I graduated HS in 1980, being 5’10” tall, and above average height for a male. I returned to university in 1999 and I was smaller than average at the university. Possibly it was location, (Ottawa, ON for HS vs. Lethbridge, AB) but likely not. More nutritious food and too much growth hormone in the meat now.
People Eating Tasty Animals!
;-)
Oh yeah! I have a banquet table, and 8 chairs from around 1835. They were really short back then! At 6’2”, I’m not comfortable sitting at the table,,,, but it is exceedingly beautiful,,, so I manage!
According to the chart the growth in Great Britai, France and Sweden averaged 4 inches, but in the other countries it was closer to 5 inches. Looks like democracy actually may have been a little better for the people. You can see that Spains rate in increase was low during the Spanish Civil War period, and rates for some countries speeded up after WWII and the immediate aftermath period.
Capitalism’s fault.
I’m 5-6.
I fit into my Miata really well, LOL.
I’m 5’4”, but my 6’3”, 275 lb. son has trouble getting into the 4-door compact we keep for our teenagers to drive.
Is that the 12 year old?
/johnny
I’m told that the Nissan Cube and similar models from other manufacturers is amazingly spacious for the tall and hefty. It’s hard for him to drive the Tracer, and he can’t get in the back seat at all!
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