Secular trends in female adult stature in relationship to gross domestic product around time of birth

Abstract

Average adult height is a commonly used indicator of biological standard of living. The secular increases in height observed for many developed countries are believed to result from improved health and nutrition in early childhood. Evidence from developing countries is less thorough and consistent. We characterized the relationship between secular trends in adult female height and real gross domestic product per capita (GDP) at the time of the woman's birth by country and region using Demographic and Health Survey data and World Bank estimates. The overall change in adult height in women born between 1945 and 1980 was 0.77 cm. Average slopes differed (t=7.0, p<0.001) between 23 African countries (−0.004 cm/year) and 17 other countries (0.062 cm/year). African countries also differed from non‐African countries in the relationship between adult height and GDP in early life. The relationship was nonsignificant for African countries (coefficient=−0.39 cm/lnGDP, p=0.3), but significantly positive for non‐African countries (coefficient=1.59 cm/lnGDP, p<0.001). The relationship between adult female height and economic conditions is inconsistent and modified by other factors in the developing world context.