Why Are Europeans Taller?

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Why Are Europeans Taller?
by Mark Lawrence

An interesting small article in this December's National Geographic attracted my attention this week. Economists at the University of Ohio and the University of Munich have found that the height advantage Americans once had over Europeans has reversed itself.

While Americans once had a ½ inch height advantage over Europeans at the beginning of the 20th Century, we are now 2 inches shorter than our European counterparts.

While both Europe and America benefited from advances in health care during the first part of the 20th Century, height increases among Americans stagnated in the 1950s while Europeans moved ahead.

The reason: European nations have universal health care.

From the article's author, Andrew Curry: "Height stems from genetics, diet, and health; good prenatal care and nutrition in early childhood yielded taller, healthier adults."

In other words, America's failing health care distribution system has left a significant number of children in our country without adequate prenatal care and nutrition, resulting in a less healthy adulthood than their European counterparts.

It is time to abandon our failed health care distribution system and develop a new system, choosing the best elements from Europe and other industrialized nations. One that is non-profit, covers everybody, and brings the decision-making power back to doctors and patients. And we must not allow hyped-up scare tactics to deter us from the advantages of a single-payer health care system. We need bold leadership now.

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