S/o how tall are you? Are Jewish women really shorter

amother

Khaki

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 9:43 am

amother [ Babypink ] wrote:

I think both Jewish men and women especially frum ones are shorter but I don't know if it's backed up by research. It's just what I see around me and comparing to non-Jewish people around me.

Nothing to do with frum, in general Jews tend to be shorter. Both men and women.

amother

Sapphire

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 9:45 am

Raisin wrote:

I am 5 5 and always feel tall. Skirts from frum shops are always too short on me. So I am clearly too tall to be frum.

Yup, almost 5' 9 here Dancing

Very slight and small boned, so lucky to be able to wear most skirts low on my hips or nothing would be long enough!
Lol, I want a T-shirt that says "Too Tall to Be Frum". Love it!

amother

Taupe

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 9:48 am

I'm 4'10" and no doctor has ever mentioned anything about my height as even a possible risk factor in my pregnancies. They have all been uneventful, bH, with normal 6-7 pound babies and normal deliveries.

Although in one of them my hip ligaments got loose and walking was painful for a few months--but no one ever suggested that my height had caused that.

Anyway, the poll results here pretty much confirm the general data that Jews (at least the genetically homogenous Ashkenazic populations) are shorter than most other Caucasian/European ethnic groups.

amother

Red

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 9:48 am

amother [ Bisque ] wrote:

Is this a thing?

I’m 5’1” and have high risk pregnancies with cervical incompetence and preterm labor. But I never thought the two were connected.

I'm 4'10" and mostly healthy pregnancies.
However I have a lot of ankle, knee, back pain that the doctor says is because of the extra 30lbs being less evenly spread out.
I do know someone who's 4'8" and she can't carry a baby past 4 1/2lbs (but that's a problem because it usually means inducing at 34 weeks.

amother

Beige

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 9:49 am

amother [ Sapphire ] wrote:

Yup, almost 5' 9 here Dancing

Very slight and small boned, so lucky to be able to wear most skirts low on my hips or nothing would be long enough!
Lol, I want a T-shirt that says "Too Tall to Be Frum". Love it!

Lol! I have a sister who is 5'8 and I'm 5'4 but my legs are longer than hers. I guess body type plays into this.

amother

Beige

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 9:56 am

amother [ Chocolate ] wrote:

I know I am! 154 cm.

I had easy pregnancies and full term babies, so it's all good. I wouldn't want to be so short that pregnancy would automatically be high risk, but other than that, I'm happy being short.

Huh? My aunt is 4'10 and had 17 healthy babies keh! All of her very short daughters also have at least 10 kids keh. I think this is a myth?

amother

Bisque

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 10:01 am

Chayalle wrote:

My girls have always been petite, and I've had to size up in frum stores to get clothes that were long enough to adequately cover their knees.

This is about styles being too short and not tznius.

I’m wondering where you shop. I’m 5’1” and always have to hem dresses and skirts from jewish stores. Knee length clothes are a long midi length on me. The current midi lengths that are now sold are maxi length for me. It’s really hard to shop. It always made me feel extremely short.

yksraya

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 10:05 am

amother [ Chocolate ] wrote:

I'm a bit shorter and don't have high risk pregnancies. I know of people even shorter than I who have normal pregnancies too. I never heard anything about height effecting pregnancy.

amother

Maroon

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 10:06 am

amother [ Bisque ] wrote:

Maybe it's different with adult clothes. I always have to size my DDs up in children's clothes. One is above average height, but the other is below average and both need sizing up. And I am not looking for 4 inches below the knee either. 1-2 inches below the bottom of the knee cap is fine for me unless the dress or skirt is the type that rides up.

amother

Bisque

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 10:07 am

amother [ Maroon ] wrote:

So maybe I should start shopping in kids stores...

yksraya

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 10:07 am

amother [ Bisque ] wrote:

On the upside, you can easily find skirts in mall stores or online. I shop skirts on amazon usually.

amother

Periwinkle

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 10:09 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Are Jewish women really shorter than average?

I think its location dependent. Exposure to sunlight and physical activity have an effect on height - minimal effect but still an effect. It can play into making a 1-2" difference in height. Add that slight difference into a few generations and it becomes significant.

From my personal observation, the communities that expose their children less to sun and physical activity have shorter kids. There are more shorter Jewish kids in Brooklyn than there are in FL or CA (relative to population). I have also seen a drop in the average height in my Brooklyn community from my generation to the next. The average in my times in high school was about 5'4. The averages in my nieces' class are about 5'2". One difference that Im aware of is that we used to spend recess time outdoors playing sports. Both the outdoor recess and sports is non existent nowadays there.

Ive always wanted to do a scientific study on this to test its relevance. But I don't have the means nor resources for it.

amother

Gold

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 10:15 am

amother [ Maroon ] wrote:

I'm 5'7", so taller than the average non-Jewish woman.

I am partially of non-Jewish ancestry, but all my tall genes are ironically from the Jews in my family tree.

I am 5 ‘11” . I also have non Jewish ancestry but the tall genes are definitely from my Jewish side. With each generation the height increased . My mother’s grandmother was not even five feet tall. Her mother was 5’ 8”. My mother is 5’10” and I am 5’11”. My oldest child is 6’6”.

amother

Lawngreen

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 10:16 am

amother [ Sapphire ] wrote:

Yup, almost 5' 9 here Dancing

Very slight and small boned, so lucky to be able to wear most skirts low on my hips or nothing would be long enough!
Lol, I want a T-shirt that says "Too Tall to Be Frum". Love it!

Yes! The amother who was creating all the niddatude stuff should do this line.

yksraya

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 10:18 am

amother [ Periwinkle ] wrote:

I was always very active and played sports, rode bikes etc as a kid. I was under the sun a lot, maybe even too much. And I'm just under 5'. My siblings are all taller than I (but still short). If something, I was the most active, and got the most sun exposure.

amother

Beige

Thu, Apr 15 2021, 10:18 am

yksraya wrote:

Take your kids to Dr. Noto.