Wapo - Why are Americans getting shorter?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, that's not it, OP. Whites of Scandinavian descent are tall. Hispanic whites are short.

Changing heights are due to changing demographics.

+1. Brown people are making us collectively shorter.

[Anonymous]

Immigration, particularly from Central America.

All the whites of European descent that I know are all taller than their parents' and grandparents' generation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Immigration, particularly from Central America.

All the whites of European descent that I know are all taller than their parents' and grandparents' generation.

Also, their birth rates are higher than whites of European descent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No, that's not it, OP. Whites of Scandinavian descent are tall. Hispanic whites are short.

Changing heights are due to changing demographics.

Hello, perhaps you missed this in OP's post:

Around 1980, even native-born White men and women started getting shorter. (We’re looking specifically at Whites because they have the most robust data.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Immigration, particularly from Central America.

All the whites of European descent that I know are all taller than their parents' and grandparents' generation.

Also, their birth rates are higher than whites of European descent.

Someone else who didn't read the OP thoroughly

Around 1980, even native-born White men and women started getting shorter. (We’re looking specifically at Whites because they have the most robust data.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kids eat a much more varied and nutritious diet than I did as a kid and they're both forecast to be shorter than us. We don't have any obesity in the family and are all fit.

DH and I are both 5'8" tall. Our girls are expected to be 5'2" and 5'6", so noticeably shorter than both of us. We attribute it to genetics given other shorter female family members. It shouldn't be diet, as we eat a pretty darn clean and healthy diet by any standard.

Your DH is short, actually really short, you however are tall, if you are the tallest female in your family then you are an outlier. A genetic fluke.

This weird poster makes no sense.

Not really, I get it. Tall mom canceled out by short dad. So the kids ended up somewhere in the middle. If dad was 6'3" and the girls ended up those heights it would be unusual.

Exactly, not sure what is weird about it, but children on average end up somewhere in the middle of the two parents, for genetic potential. The 5'6 girl is a bit taller than average and the 5'2 is a bit shorter than average. Mom is taller than average, and DH is shorter than average, you get one kid taller than average and one shorter than average. Sounds about right.

If 5'8 mom had chosen to procreate with a 6'2 dad, then the children would have had a much better potential to be taller than average, but if you procreate with a shorter-than-average person, your kids end up right where they were supposed to, one a bit taller for a female and one a bit smaller for a female. If your kids had ended up being 6'2 or 4'10 then that would be unusual indeed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Immigration, particularly from Central America.

All the whites of European descent that I know are all taller than their parents' and grandparents' generation.

Why do you think your limited circle trumps larger data pools?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, that's not it, OP. Whites of Scandinavian descent are tall. Hispanic whites are short.

Changing heights are due to changing demographics.

Hello, perhaps you missed this in OP's post:

Around 1980, even native-born White men and women started getting shorter. (We’re looking specifically at Whites because they have the most robust data.)

The definition of "white" in this country has always been a moving target.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, that's not it, OP. Whites of Scandinavian descent are tall. Hispanic whites are short.

Changing heights are due to changing demographics.

Hello, perhaps you missed this in OP's post:

Around 1980, even native-born White men and women started getting shorter. (We’re looking specifically at Whites because they have the most robust data.)

The definition of "white" in this country has always been a moving target.

So wapo now defines Central americans and Asians as white?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's hard to believe there could really have been a huge change in the quality of food around 1980. I'm more inclined to believe an environmental chemical factor we haven't identified yet.

Really? Junk food, processed food, food with additives, food with depleted nutrients, corn syrup in everything, all became prevalent in the 70’s. That’s the “environmental chemical factor “ that we have identified. Even junk food shifted from using sugar to using corn syrup. Shifts were also apparent in the quality of food given to livestock and the use of pesticides. Think about it. My parents grew up eating what we now call organic food — because that’s what most foods were. By the 70’s, Americans had about a decade with stuff like PopTarts and Tang.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, that's not it, OP. Whites of Scandinavian descent are tall. Hispanic whites are short.

Changing heights are due to changing demographics.

Hello, perhaps you missed this in OP's post:

Around 1980, even native-born White men and women started getting shorter. (We’re looking specifically at Whites because they have the most robust data.)

The definition of "white" in this country has always been a moving target.

So wapo now defines Central americans and Asians as white?

Some of them are.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Immigration, particularly from Central America.

All the whites of European descent that I know are all taller than their parents' and grandparents' generation.

Also, their birth rates are higher than whites of European descent.

Someone else who didn't read the OP thoroughly

Around 1980, even native-born White men and women started getting shorter. (We’re looking specifically at Whites because they have the most robust data.)

The younger siblings of Dreamers...

[Anonymous]

It’s an optical illusion! People aren’t getting shorter, they are getting wider. Fly coach and you will see my point.

[Anonymous]

It's demographics. "Even native-born white men and women are getting shorter..." Who are they marrying? Are Scandinavian-descent always marrying Scandinavian-descent or are they marrying Irish descent? Not all "white" Europeans are tall. I currently live in a largely white area and just vacationed in a different largely white area. The differences in height is noticeable. Much taller in the vacation spot vs where we live.

My boys visually and demographically identify as white yet I am Latina. They will not be as tall as their 6'4" father, which is good because he doesn't fit well into some public spaces.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:No, that's not it, OP. Whites of Scandinavian descent are tall. Hispanic whites are short.

Changing heights are due to changing demographics.

Hello, perhaps you missed this in OP's post:

Around 1980, even native-born White men and women started getting shorter. (We’re looking specifically at Whites because they have the most robust data.)

The definition of "white" in this country has always been a moving target.

So wapo now defines Central americans and Asians as white?

Some of them are.

Grasping at any logic to blame POC