A while ago, the topic of "the average height of Chinese men and women in East Asia" rushed to the hot search, and the authoritative medical journal "The Lancet" published a study, and in the past 35 years, the Chinese has become higher and higher!
The Internet was full of joy.
You know, the average height of Chinese is lower than that of neighbor Korea, but many people have untouchable pain in their hearts.
However, don't be too happy too soon, this matter and you who are reading this article, may not have much to do with it...
Let's first take a look at what the Lancet study says:
Image source: Stand Cool Helo
This study focused on the physical changes of children and adolescents, mainly in terms of height and weight.
The researchers analyzed 2,181 studies in 200 countries around the world, including data from more than 65 million children and adolescents aged 5 to 19 years, and estimated trends in height and BMI (body mass index) over the past 35 years (1985-2019) [1].
First, let's talk about the biggest conclusion of our relationship with China:
With an average height of 175.7 centimeters, China's 19-year-old boy ranks 65th in the world and 1st in East Asia, surpassing South Korea.
The average height of 19-year-old girls in China is 163.5 centimeters, which is also the first in East Asia.
Chinese children are the fastest growing group in the world, especially boys.
Over the past 35 years, the average height of a 19-year-old boy in China has increased by 8 centimeters, ranking first in the world, and the world ranking has jumped from 150th in 1985 to 65th in 2019.
(Trends in height change among 19-year-olds in China.) Image source: Lancet)
In fact, according to the latest research, the average height of 19-year-old teenagers in our country has been equal to or even surpassed that of Portugal, Italy and Spain in Europe.
The height of the 19-year-old boy is even close to that of the American boy.
From the table below, it is clear how contentious chinese boys are!
In addition to the powerful Chinese data, there is also a set of data in this study that can satisfy your curiosity and become a small leader in the circle of friends:
Which country has the highest average height for men?
Dutch male: 183.8 cm
Which country has the highest average height for women?
Dutch female: 170.4 cm
(Still the Netherlands!) ）
Which country has the shortest average height for men?
East Timorese male: 160.1 cm
(Where?) A: Southeast Asia, not very close to Indonesia)
Which country has the shortest average height for women?
Guatemalan female: 150.9 cm
(Where is this?) A: Central America, not far from the United States)
What can we learn behind this study?
1. How tall can your child grow?
Height is related to many factors, the most important of which is heredity.
There is a word in medicine called "target height", which is to calculate the height of the child based on the height of the parents.
Depending on the study, there are different formulas for calculating the height of the target, and we chose one of the more recognized [2]:
Target height = 45.99 + 0.78 × (father height + mother height) / 2
Target height for girls = 37.85 + 0.75 × (father height + mother height) / 2
Let's take Mom 155 cm and Dad 175 cm as an example to give you an example.
If you were born to a boy, the height would be about 174.69 cm.
If you are born to a girl, the height is about 161.60 cm.
But if you are a post-80s or post-90s, after calculation, you may find that your height seems to be higher than the "target height".
The reason is that heredity can only determine the propensity and limits of height growth, and acquired factors such as the environment, sports, and nutrition are also important [2].
In the past 35 years, the "counterattack" of Chinese average height is inseparable from the rapid development of the economy.
The study also shows that the countries with the largest increases in average height for children are mainly emerging economies, such as South Korea , where boys rank 3rd in growth and 2nd in girls.
In many sub-Saharan African countries, the average height of children is almost the same, or even lower.
Only when the economy develops well can nutrition and sports keep up.
Haidian District of Beijing analyzed the height of 1526 preschool children[3] and found that the father's education level, the child's gender, birth length, meals, exercise, weekend exercise time and other factors will affect the child's target height.
Scratch the point!
Mom and Dad are clear, right?
Although the height of your two sons cannot be changed, you can work hard the day after tomorrow, such as ensuring that your child has sufficient nutrition intake every day and exercises for more than 1 hour on weekends.
Read more medical texts: the golden season of growing tall has arrived! Ignoring these 3 points, the child will have to wait another year
2, cheer for height at the same time, do not forget this indicator...
Regarding this study of "The Lancet", many media and self-media are cheering for height, but there is a "big pit" that has been ignored -
body! heavy!
Our kids are getting fatter!
Of course, childhood obesity rates are on the rise in most countries around the world.
Take the body mass index (BMI) as the criterion, that is, weight (kg) divided by the square of height (meters):
The fattest country for males is the Cook Islands (South Pacific, near New Zealand): 29.6
The thinnest country for men is Ethiopia (Africa): 19.2
The country with the fattest women is Tonga (South Pacific, also close to New Zealand): 29.0
The thinnest country for women is Timor-Leste (old faces up): 19.6
What is this concept?
Men of the same height of 170 cm are 30 kg fatter in the Cook Islands than those in Ethiopia (85 kg vs 55 kg).
Women of the same height of 155 cm will be 23 kg fatter in Tonga than in East Timor (70 kg vs 47 kg).
Back in China, our children's obesity rates are also growing rapidly.
(Trends in BMI among 19-year-olds in China.) Image source: Lancet)
Tall or not, it affects appearance. What parents should pay more attention to is the child's physique. A person's physique is closely related to the degree of obesity, just like it may take 15 seconds for you to run 100 meters normally, but if you carry 20 kilograms, it may take 20 seconds to run.
Over the past 35 years, the BMI of 19-year-old boys in China has increased by about 3. Taking a height of 170 centimeters as an example, this is equivalent to gaining 8.7 kilograms of body weight.
Our children are getting fatter and fatter, and all kinds of high-calorie, fried foods, high-sugar drinks are inseparable, just ask, how many children do not like fried chicken?
Compared with japan, a neighbor of similar races-
The detection rate of overweight obesity in all ages of male children and adolescents in China and most of the age groups in women is higher than that in Japan [4].
According to the results of a national student physical fitness and health survey released in 2018, the detection rate of overweight and obesity among chinese students aged 7 to 18 years old reached 19.4% [5], and childhood obesity is an important risk factor for chronic diseases in adulthood (such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, type 2 diabetes, etc.).
According to a U.S. study of children and adolescents aged 5 to 18 years [6], overweight and obesity affect the somatic function of children and adolescents, resulting in decreased respiratory function, which in turn affects cardiopulmonary endurance.
Recall that when you went to school, how many of the buddies in the class who ran fast and jumped far were small fat mounds?
The Lancet study has mixed feelings for us. Chinese children are taller, but they are also fat. Obesity has a greater impact on health.
Parents must pay attention to their children's diet and exercise, so that children not only have to grow tall, but also grow healthy.
bibliography
[1] RODRIGUEZ-MARTINEZ, Andrea, et al. Height and body-mass index trajectories of school-aged children and adolescents from 1985 to 2019 in 200 countries and territories: a pooled analysis of 2181 population-based studies with 65 million participants. The Lancet, 2020, 396.10261: 1511-1524.
Ren Longlong & Li Yuanxia. (2018). Analysis of influencing factors of children's height. Electronic Journal of Clinical Medicine Literature(56), 182.
Shen Fang. (2019). Analysis of factors influencing height growth of 1526 preschool children in Haidian District. Chinese Journal of Maternal and Child Health, 10(02), 71-76.
Yuan Xiang, Yin Xiaojian, Zhang Ting, Li Yuqiang, & Suzuki Ming. (2019). Comparison of height and weight development of children and adolescents in China and Japan. School Health in China(11).
[5] Gao Di, Dong Yanhui, Yin Yang, Zou Zhiyong, & Ma Jun. (2018). Analysis of the change trend of height and weight of primary and secondary school students in China from 2005 to 2014. China School Health(2), 252-255,259.
[6] JOHNSTON S,MCALEVEY L. Stable shareholdings and Japan’s bubble economy: an historical overview[J]. Strategic Manage J, 2015,19( 11) : 1101-1107.
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