Spain’s younger generations witnessed stagnation in height development. So, what is the average height in Spain? Is there any trend in this stagnation? Let’s find it out now.
As a lot of you might know, Spanish females and males these days look quite tall compared to other nations in Europe. According to a few studies, the average height increase in Spain is even 1 cm taller than that of the population in other European countries.
At the same time, both girls and boys in Spain experienced a period where their height didn’t increase or decrease. In other words, Spanish people who were born in the period of 1990 and 1994 have stagnation in height. So, what is the average height in Spain? Is that stagnation in height growth permanent or just temporary? Let’s find it out in this article right away.
Key Takeaway
- There was an increase of 12 centimeters in height for Spanish men in the period of the early 1870s to 1971.
- However, the younger group of Spanish boys and girls (born from 1990 to 1994) experienced stagnation in height
- According to various reliable sources, the average height of women in Spain is 5 feet 4 inches (approx. 163 cm). The average for Spanish males is 5 feet 8 inches (approx. 174 cm). Generally speaking, these average heights are measured among Spanish people aged from 20 to 49 years old.
Spanish Males Have Seen an Increase of 12 cm in the Average Height
Based on the results from the University of Essex, the average height of European males are currently 11 cm taller than they were approx. over a century ago. In particular, the average height of European men, whose height is 20 years old, stands approx. 5 feet 10 inches (or around 178 cm).
Besides, there is another research conducted to examine the average height of young guys in 15 different nations in Europe (from 1870 to 1980). In particular, the study has been released in the Oxford Economic Papers in digital form. Accordingly, researchers discovered several important distinctions among men in the nations examined.
For instance, the average height of guys increased by 12 cm, from 163 cm in the early 1870s to 175 cm in 1971. As a lot of you might not know, that increase was 1 cm higher than the average increased height of European males. That average in Sweden, on the other hand, increased just 10 cm over the last of the 20th century. Particularly, Swedish men reached an average height of 5 feet 11 inches (approx. 180 cm) during that time.
Having said that, there are other more intriguing facts found through the research. Particularly, the increase rate was found to be far greater than during the Great Depression and the 2 World Wars when compared to the tranquility and wealth period. But you should know that it is not applied to all the countries in the European region except for Germany, Belgium, Austria, Holland, Scandinavia, Ireland, and the United Kingdom.
Besides, the researchers even expressed their surprise after this study. Specifically, thanks to the advanced setting of health and medicine services in these countries, the overall increased average height rate.
However, researchers also talk about another possible reason for that increased growth rate. Accordingly, it might be due to the lowered rate of fertility throughout that period. Specifically, the scientists found that families with smaller sizes are typically linked to offspring with taller heights.
If you’re interested in comparing the average height of Spanish males to that of males in other countries, check out our article on average height in Russia. It’s always interesting to see how different countries stack up against each other when it comes to physical traits!
Why do Spanish people born from 1990 to 1994 not reach a height of 180 cm?
As a few of you might not know, the Ministry of Health conducted surveys about nationwide health. As per the findings of these surveys, the average height of females and males in Spain who were born from 1990 to 1994 is declining.
For those who don’t know, scientists want to figure out the reasons that lead to that unchanged height. In addition, they also want to know if the trend keeps going or if it is just a short-lived and long-lived standstill. According to researchers, the eating plan or diet has experienced something that makes their bodies wider. But more importantly, it doesn’t happen at the same intensity and rate that it has occurred during the last several decades.
As a lot of you might not know, there are different researchers and scientists from different institutes who joined this survey. One of them, popularly known as Antonio David Cámara, concentrated on how the distinctions in socio-economy influence the average height of the population, as well as how it has shifted over the last few decades. As per the results, people typically have four hundred years of secular height increase.
But that result, in fact, didn’t surprise the author, Antonio. He knows that in Spain, the life span has increased at a staggering rate during the last four hundred years. Based on one piece of information from his research, the average height of Spaniards was extremely high from the 1950s ahead. And it started to increase at an incredibly fast rate. Besides, it might take a very long time since Spain might follow a bit later. Nevertheless, they started to grow exceptionally rapidly after that.
The Staggering Rate is Similar to the rest of the European Countries
Having said that, Spain is not the only nation experiencing that stagnation in height. Particularly, other nations in the European regions also experience the trend of leveling off the average height. Not only the average height but the intergenerational height development also tends to decrease or stagnate.
But why does this happen to those countries? In reality, researchers might not know the key reasons for those nations. Even so, when it comes to Spain, they indicate some hypotheses.
According to Antonio David Cámara, the best explanation for this is that Spain has got a “standard” normalization in the key aspects of living standards, wide access to a better health diet, the incidence of transmissible diseases, as well as the availability of better sources of products and services ensured by social advantages. And once the environmental conditions are normalized, the optimum biological potential will then be achieved.
In fact, the average height in Spain is similar to the rest of the European countries. If you want to know more about rare and unique gemstones, you can check out this detailed guide on opal rocks to learn about their types, benefits, and value.
Intense Height Increase Over Decades
As previously stated, there are various studies conducted to find out the reason for this trend. Nevertheless, just a few showed detailed results, and one of the first researchers examining the prestige in Spain was carried out by José Miguel Martínez Carrión, a professor at the University of Murcia. According to the professor, he was also surprised by the findings of his study.
Particularly, he analyzed the evolution of Spaniards’ height for quite a long period. And they are the men growing at the greatest rate in the later part of the 20th century. Specifically after the 1980s, Spanish males have increased substantially due to the thorough transitions in society and economy.
Height in Relationship to Living Standards
According to the historian, a society’s living standards reflect a lot of its population’s height. Having said that, the availability of different nutrient sources and levels of income are also unequal. For instance, if a kid has a favorable environment and conditions to access these things during their childhood and adolescence, their later height tends to be taller.
If you are interested in learning about height in relation to living standards, check out Average Height In Norway. This article not only provides information about the average height of men and women in Norway, but also explores how things like nutrition and economics can impact height. Understanding how these factors can affect height trends can be useful in making educated guesses about the average height of people in other parts of the world.
People of the Youngest Age Group
According to researchers, people aged 23 to 49 years old tend to have more stable body height than other age groups. Therefore, scientists examined this age group, and this group was also the one surprising the most.
Besides, researchers conducted a study to examine females and males aged from 23 to 27 years old (who were born from 1990 to 1994). Accordingly, they see a stagnation in the height of people from this age range.
In other words, people of the youngest age group in Spain tend to experience a more staggering rate of height increase.
More studies are needed
Having said that, the findings seem to be striking yet still sparse, according to Martínez Carrión. In addition, scientists might just make hypotheses with those dates. They just explore what occurred during that time. Therefore, researchers should conduct more studies to figure out the key reasons for this stagnation in height.
While our knowledge of average height in Guatemala is increasing, more studies are still needed to better understand human height and its variations around the world. In the meantime, learning about average heights in different countries can be a fun and interesting way to explore global diversity.
Changes in The Eating Plan for Kids and Adolescents
According to various data, since the 1990s, the rate of milk intake has decreased in Spain. In particular, the per capita milk consumption was found to begin to increase significantly in the 1950s. However, after 40 years, that consumption stopped increasing and began falling down dramatically.
As a lot of you might know, milk is widely known as a fundamental protein for kids’ development. And according to Martínez Carrión, the quality of food for kids in this country might not be really good. He also recommends that the quality of nutrients might be an important aspect reflecting the stagnation in height increase.
Even so, Martínez Carrión is not afraid of going any further to figure out the real reasons for this. And he did find something else. In particular, they are becoming fatter and fatter over time. And he wondered if the increased level of obesity affects this stagnation.
To make it clear, there are 20% of the whole Spanish population can’t make enough money to live. What’s more, a small part of the Spanish population has experienced vulnerability and inequality. And more importantly, these levels have increased over time.
The data also said that the diet seems to have something wrong that makes the body become wider and wider. In addition, it makes the intensity and rate of height growth decrease.
Accordingly, the diet for kids and adolescents tends to be oriented toward the consumption of processed foods. And obese kids are growing more and more. In other words, the diet for kids and adolescents doesn’t seem to be right.
It is true that the researchers are not sure about the diet changes causing the height stagnation. Even so, as a lot of you might all know, the first three years of life are exceptionally crucial for kids’ growth. In addition, adolescence is extremely sensitive and important. In this particular instance, it is excess nutrients that result in undernourishment, not deficiency. Specifically, it is because kids consume a high amount of low-quality nutrients and a lot of calories over a long time.
What’s more, people in this younger age group, who were born in the 1990s, were significantly affected by the crisis in 2008. Particularly, it influenced the latter stage of their adolescence. So, might this recession time also influence their growth? Researchers, in fact, still don’t know exactly the reasons, but they do know that something occurred during that period.
So, Is It Permanent or Temporary Stagnation?
According to the researchers, there are two possibilities here. One is that if the stagnation in height is just temporary, it will have an influence on the population since they begin growing again. And these generations experienced something abnormal.
On the other hand, the key reasons might be far beyond that optimum biological potential. Regardless of the reason, the figures and results are there. We just hope that they can figure out the root causes so the situation of this stagnation can be improved.
Height Requirements for Spanish Females to Join Police
According to Spain’s Supreme Court, the height requirements for Spanish females to join the police force are discriminated against. Therefore, they decided to reject the height minimum rule.
Accordingly, attendees for the National Police Corps must fulfill the minimum height to join the force, in addition to other requirements. In particular, males must stand at least 5 feet 4 inches (approx. 165 cm), and females must stand 5 feet 3 inches (approx. 160 cm) at the very least.
Having said that, there still are a lot of females who want to take part in the police force but don’t meet that height requirement. For instance, a female, whose height is just above 5 feet (approx. 154 cm), complained that the minimum height was far more preferable for males since just 3% of the Spanish male population doesn’t fulfill that standard. For Spanish females, a quarter of the whole population doesn’t meet that standard as they are not as tall as that.
So, the Supreme Court stated that it was not enough just to set different distinctions in height for females and males. On the other hand, it would be better to consider the average height for males and females in the whole population of Spain.
So, as per the records of the court, the average height of Spanish females is 5 feet 4 inches (approx. 163 cm), and the medium tallness of Spanish males is 5 feet 8 inches (approx. 174 cm).
