Height Loss Tied to Heart Disease in Men
(Chicago, AP, 12/11/06)

Goya Wannamethee of the Royal Free & University College Medical School in London, and colleagues, measured the height of 4,213 British men in the 1970s. The researchers also weighed the subjects, took blood samples and collected medical and lifestyle data using questionnaires. After 20 years, the investigators reassessed the subjects and took new height measurements; then tracked the men for six years more. The scientists found that participants who had lost an inch or more in height were more likely to develop heart disease and to die earlier than their peers. These findings suggest that height loss may be a symptom of deteriorating health in seniors

(Archives of Internal Medicine, December 2006)