open access
The association between body height and longevity: evidence from a national population sample
Affiliations- Division of Anatomy, Department of Human Morphology and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine, Wroclaw Medical University, Wroclaw, Poland
open access
Abstract
Background: A wealth of research suggests that taller individuals are healthier and live longer than their shorter counterparts, although conflicting results have been reported. This study aims to investigate whether taller individuals in Poland exhibit greater longevity compared to their shorter counterparts.
Materials and methods: Data on declared height were collected from 848,860 adults who died in the years 2004–2008 in Poland. To eliminate the cohort effects, Z-values were computed. Pearson’s correlation coefficients were calculated independently for males and females. Subsequently, one way ANOVA was performed.
Results: The correlation between adult height and longevity was negative and statistically significant in both men and women. After eliminating the effects of secular trends in height, the correlation was very weak (r = –0.0044 in men and r = –0.0038 in women) but significant (p = 0.023 and p = 0.022, respectively).
Conclusions: Despite the significant correlation observed between the two variables, it should be noted that the relationship between height and longevity is very weak and tenuous. Overall, these results do not support the hypothesis that taller individuals have a longevity advantage. Further research is warranted to identify the underlying biological mechanisms driving this phenomenon as well as to explore additional variables affecting human longevity.
Abstract
Background: A wealth of research suggests that taller individuals are healthier and live longer than their shorter counterparts, although conflicting results have been reported. This study aims to investigate whether taller individuals in Poland exhibit greater longevity compared to their shorter counterparts.
Materials and methods: Data on declared height were collected from 848,860 adults who died in the years 2004–2008 in Poland. To eliminate the cohort effects, Z-values were computed. Pearson’s correlation coefficients were calculated independently for males and females. Subsequently, one way ANOVA was performed.
Results: The correlation between adult height and longevity was negative and statistically significant in both men and women. After eliminating the effects of secular trends in height, the correlation was very weak (r = –0.0044 in men and r = –0.0038 in women) but significant (p = 0.023 and p = 0.022, respectively).
Conclusions: Despite the significant correlation observed between the two variables, it should be noted that the relationship between height and longevity is very weak and tenuous. Overall, these results do not support the hypothesis that taller individuals have a longevity advantage. Further research is warranted to identify the underlying biological mechanisms driving this phenomenon as well as to explore additional variables affecting human longevity.
Keywords
adult height, body height, lifespan, longevity, stature, survival
About this articleTitle
The association between body height and longevity: evidence from a national population sample
Journal
Issue
Vol 83, No 1 (2024): Folia Morphologica
Article type
Original article
Pages
139-145
Published online
2023-01-26
Page views
1188
Article views/downloads
5547
DOI
Pubmed
Bibliographic record
Folia Morphol 2024;83(1):139-145.
Keywords
adult height
body height
lifespan
longevity
stature
survival
Authors
Piotr Paweł Chmielewski
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