Around the world, people are getting taller – so why are Indian heights on the decline?
New data shows that Indian men are shorter now than they were a decade ago. So are large numbers of women. Losing stature Distribution of mean height of men according to age. Source: Trends of adult height in India from 1998 to 2015: Evidence from the National Family and Health Survey. Distribution of mean height of women according to age. Source: Trends of adult height in India from 1998 to 2015: Evidence from the National Family and Health Survey. Why it matters India’s public health situation A new paper published on September 17 says that while the average height of people across the world is increasing, the average height of Indians is actually falling. The paper examines the trends in the heights of Indian men and women between the age groups of 15-25 and 26-50 based on the National Family and Health Surveys – and concludes that India’s indicators are actually getting worse. This is a worrying situation. Height is one of the most basic indicators of nutrition as well as ...