While obesity has tripled in many Western European countries since the 1980s, the Dutch keep growing upwards. The average height is now 6 feet 1 inch for Dutch men and 5 feet 7 inches for Dutch women. So why are the Dutch so tall? Theories abound. An often-heard argument is the Dutch love of dairy and their protein-rich diet, but there are also serious studies that look at height differences, and the Dutch pop up time and again in many of them.
Factors Influencing Height
The study of human stature is called auxology. It is a relatively new area, but one that has already thrown up some interesting results. There is a widely accepted evolutionary idea that each generation is fitter and taller than the last. This appears not to be the case at all. In Northern Europe, human height reached a maximum around 800 A.D., but then dropped to a minimum in the 17th century before climbing back up again.
Two main factors seem to have caused this dip. The first was the growth of cities: the more people were clustered together, the less food there was to go round and the faster diseases spread; the second was the drop in global temperatures, during what is known as the Little Ice Age. Findings such as these have made it clear that human height is not just linked to genetics or diet, but is much more sensitive to a range of influences than was previously thought.
Spreading the Wealth
The most convincing argument for why the Dutch have grown so tall so recently was put forward by J.W. Drukker, a professor of economic history at the University of Groningen. His studies revealed that the Dutch growth spurt of the mid-19th century coincided with the establishment of the first liberal democracy. Before this time, Holland had grown rich off its colonies but the wealth had stayed in the hands of the elite. After this time, the wealth began to trickle down to all levels of society, the average income went up and so did the height.
Since then, the gap between the rich and poor in Holland has remained relatively narrow, and the country now has some of the best pre- and postnatal care in the world. This is in direct contrast to America, for example, where the population, once more than 3 inches taller than the average Dutchman, has not increased in height for 25 years.
Protecting Tall Dutch Interests
There are now a enough Dutch people who are taller than the average height to warrant the founding of Klub Lange Mensen (Tall Person’s Club) to protect their interests. In order to become a member, men have to be taller than 6 feet 3 inches and women 5 feet 11 inches.
Cor de Graaf, Acting Secretary of KLM, is 6 feet 8 inches and well acquainted with the practical annoyances of being tall. "I’ve never experienced discrimination, but I was often teased at school because I was always a head taller than everyone else. KLM raises awareness about the problems exceptionally tall people face, and campaigns on their behalf for thing such as bicycles with larger frames and beds and mattresses longer than two meters [6 feet 6 inches]," he says.
So will the Dutch just keep on growing? While some have argued that the Dutch could grow another 4 inches, others state that an average of 6 feet 2 inches tall for men and 5 feet 8 inches for women is the theoretical ideal for an optimum standard of living. In the meantime, the Dutch can continue to reap the benefits of excellent healthcare, a decent diet and always being able to see at concerts.
Sources
- Prof. J.W. Drukker, University of Groningen, Nederlands
- Klub Lange Mensen
Cecily Layzell - Cecily Layzell is a food and travel writer and founder of restaurant review site www.eat-amsterdam.com.
