Lanky people may avoid Alzheimer's
Leggy women and lanky men not only have a height advantage, they are less likely to develop Alzheimer's.
Researchers found a link between short limbs and a heightened risk of dementia in both sexes.
Scientists measured the arm length and knee height of 2,798 men and women with an average age of 72. Five years later, 480 of the participants had developed Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia.
In women, leg length was found to have a major influence on dementia risk. For every extra inch of leg, the chances of developing dementia or Alzheimer's were reduced by 16%.
Women with the shortest arm spans were 1.5 times more likely to suffer mental decline than those with longer arm spans.
As far as men were concerned, only arm span was linked with a lower risk of dementia. With every increased inch in arm length, the risk was reduced by 6%.
For both men and women, the associations were stronger for Alzheimer's than other forms of dementia.
Dr Tina Huang, who led the research at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, said: "Reduced height for age, or stunting, is thought to be most closely tied to environment and the quality of diet in early life, which corresponds with periods of the fastest leg growth.
"As a result, environment in the first years of life may play an important role in determining future dementia risk. Our findings are consistent with other studies that have been done in Korean populations, where shorter limb length was associated with greater risk of dementia."
The findings appear in the journal Neurology.
