Causes of Short Stature Among Coalmining Children, 1823-1850
Author(s)
Kirby, Peter
Abstract
Variation in human stature is regarded as an indicator of the nutritional status and the standard of living of historical populations. However, British children employed in coal mining, although well fed and possessing a robust physical development, were shorter than their working-class contemporaries. This article presents anthropometric evidence taken in 1841 relating to children in different occupations. It suggests that the short stature of coalmining children was linked to occupational selection for height together with other, discrete, environmental factors. It concludes that historical records of human stature may have been affected by occupational influences unconnected with conventionally defined measures of welfare.
