Tradeoffs: Would You Sacrifice the Edge of Being Tall for Several More Years of Life on Planet Earth?

"Being short used to be bad for longevity, but the pendulum has swung in the opposite direction" - CNBC, February 25, 2023

I faced it long ago: Being from a genetic background of Italian-Americans short was a negative.

For instance, I didn't have Princess Di's long long legs. 

It has been a struggle to keep weight down since I could not consume as many calories as taller folks. 

Good luck trying to find proper-fitting clothes.  When I do they are priced premium.

And I have to be a pest asking for help to reach the popcorn on the top shelf in Walmart.

That's the female version of short. 

It's worse, lots, for males. My late father had been 5'2." He and other Italian workers on the old Pennsy RR were the butt of jokes by WASP society. Dad was not a happy man. Napoleon complex, too.

Disney head Bob Iger is 6'1." Financial tycoon Leon Black is 6'5". (Unfortunately he blew the branding part of his success.)

The average US President is about six feet." Only 5'5" Hillary Clinton lost out on that. Had she more height she might have been aging with her appearance holding up better.

As for other women, founder of Leading Women Entrepreneurs Linda Wellbrock is about six feet. (On the other hand, though, Janet Yellen is 5'3".)

Professional anonymous networks such as Fishbowl Consulting confirm the power tool height is in creating success.

But, research is showing that we short creatures are in the gold if we value longevity. Research, such as headed by Thomas T. Samaras and published by Elsevier, shows that we live longer. Probably up to six years.  Research cited by NJBusiness confirms the success part for women per se.

The major reason is this: Tall humans require more cell replication than we shorter ones. That exhausts the system. The exhausted human has to give up the game of survival at a younger age.

But what the research doesn't address is if we short people are willing to take on the tradeoffs for a possible several more years. 

Me? 

No. My gallows humor is: Had I long legs I wouldn't have had to try to so hard. Not socially. Not professionally. 

In my next life I will have 20 fewer IQ points and nine more inches in height. 

Meanwhile, I am stuck with the challenge of making my finances cover so many more years than I anticipated being on this side of the grass.

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