Worldwide Variation in Human Growth

Abstract

The health of a population is most accurately reflected in the rate of growth of its children. It is this theme which underlies the analysis and presentation of what is by far the largest compilation of growth data ever assembled. The first edition, published in 1976, included all known reliable recent results on height, weight, skinfolds and other body measurements from all parts of the globe. In this edition, the very numerous measurements taken between 1976 and 1988 have been included as well as the results of the large number of new studies made on rate of maturation as evinced by bone age and pubertal development stages. Many sections of the book dwell on disentangling the effects of the environment and heredity on growth, and thus answer the question of whether one universal standard suffices for all peoples of the world, or whether different populations (such as races or nations) should each have their own optimal growth standards. Written by practical people with experience of the problems in developing countries, this book explains in simple terms the different sorts of growth surveys, how to set about making them, and which sort to choose. All who are professionally concerned with child health should read it.

Seasonality of growth in Shanghai infants (n=4128) born in 11 consecutive years

“…Infants tend to grow faster in height in spring and summer and faster in weight in autumn and winter (Brown et al, 1982;Nabarro et al, 1988;Pollit & Arthur, 1989;Eveleth & Tanner, 1990;Cole, 1993). However, seasonality in child growth is not con®ned to less-developed communities.…”

“…The causes of seasonality in child growth may be different between the developing and developed world. In developing communities the growth rate seems governed more by climatic factors such as dry and wet periods, and by their in¯uence on the availability of food and the prevalence of infectious diseases (Eveleth & Tanner;1990). This is not the case in developed countries with abundant food supply, better hygiene and disease prevention programs.…”

Longitudinal observation of growth of Vietnamese children in Hanoi, Vietnam from birth to 10 years of age

“…A positive secular trend (increase in height) is to be regarded as a positive indicator of the population health status (Wieringen, 1986) and of a reduction in poverty (Martorell et al, 1988). In industrialized countries, this secular trend is slowing down because almost all members of the population have reached a standard of living that enables them to reach their maximum genetic potential (Eveleth and Tanner, 1990;Martorell et al, 1988). In many developing countries, living conditions are improving and consequently secular trends in population height have become evident.…”

Association Between Physical and Motor Development in Childhood: A Longitudinal Study of Japanese Twins

“…However, we found clear associations also for the last milestone (i.e., running). This shows that early physical development is widely associated with different indicators (Eveleth & Tanner, 2003), corresponding associations between anthropometric indicators and motor development can still be seen, suggesting a universal nature of this effect independent of ancestry group. By including twins our study design gave us an opportunity to obtain more information on the background of these associations.…”