we're getting taller. it could be a problem

The Need for Taller Houses Should Not be Dismissed?

We're getting taller. It could be a problem!

Does the image of sleeping with your feet forced out of your window alarm you?

Could this image become our reality?

It is not unusual for fellow colleagues to mention that the need to duck under a door frame on a viewing is a common occurrence. Or even worse, a thud on the forehead, which causes embarrassment for usually the leggy teenager or young adult, already slightly uncomfortable, by being in a stranger's bedroom! What if our homes of today become like the homes of the past? Whilst we take great nostalgic delight in the aesthetic of a crooked little doorway for a 4ft human, this could soon be us, as we are forced to bend in half to get through our own front doors! It won't be so delightful then!

'According to the Dutch military their average man has grown an astounding 20 cm or 8 inches in the last 150 years'! Whilst we trail behind the Dutch, nonetheless, height increase is notable and raises the question, should our houses and cars be bigger to accommodate human growth?

A recent trip to The Netherlands replenished my perennial quest for absorbing culture and difference, but it also ignited a series of thoughts that have led me to think, that maybe we do need to give serious thought to how can we shrink ourselves? This is no laughing matter!

I was fortunate to enjoy the opulence of staying with family, as opposed to a hotel or an Airbnb. What I love about this, is the intimacy, and the closeness it allows to step closer to a way of life that is not the same as ours. You get a taste of their rituals, habits, and ways of being, that an impersonal hotel is not able to provide. Of course, holidaying is hugely personal, and being invisible could be your imperative.

The five-day break has been firmly banked in my memory library labelled “good times”, but what I haven't stopped exclaiming about to any poor soul who deigns to listen to me, is the interior design of their home.

What initially drew my attention to this was on the first evening, my daughter and I were brushing our teeth in their family bathroom. As we stood side by side, in front of a mirrored backdrop with adjacent well-spaced double sinks, our reaction was identical. “Oh my god, we do not have to bend over!” We laughed out loud. Our simultaneous realisation, that their bathroom fittings were notably taller than ours in England was the beginning of a conversation.

We are both above average height for females, and not to perpetually have that annoying niggle in your lower back when engaging in bathroom action was rather novel! We then proceeded to continue with our skin routines in the bathroom, as opposed to scurrying off to our bedrooms for comfort; the luxury of standing vertically added a whole new quality to bathroom usage. I was in no rush to leave.

I then began to notice the height of all of the interior fixtures and fittings in their traditional Dutch home (they most certainly build for the increase of human height)! My uncle took great joy in my observations, clearly revelling in the empathetic design of his home. He too is taller than average – most of our family are – and revealed how much difference it had made to him. He is a keen chef, and the hours he spends in the kitchen have been agreeably enhanced by what seems such a simple, yet thoughtfully intelligent standardisation to the interior design of homes. He said it was normal yet transformative, and I could see how and why.

The knowledge that the Dutch are the tallest nation is universal. According to the World Population Review, this is the case; they stand on average around 6ft or 72.36 inches. The shortest people reside in Indonesia, coming in at a 5ft 2 average or 62.2 inches. Now, I can't imagine Indonesians feeling as excited about the interior of my uncle and aunt's house as I do, but the fact that the population of the Northern hemisphere is on average taller than the Southern hemisphere makes me wonder why homes in the UK continue to be built with back bending unempathetic regulations. Although of course, we don't have to think too deeply to find the answer! But that is not what this article is about.

According to Naziaty – a well-established architect who trained in England and Malaysia, who also has a wealth of academia experience and is an advocator and spokesperson for the National Council on disability and accessibility issues – questions should we continue to carry on building based on the “human dimensions used by designers [which] would be based on a 5ft 7inch person for male and 5ft 3 inches for female”?

A question that deepened my curiosity: surely if we are getting taller, shouldn't building regulations be reconsidered in the Northern Hemisphere? There are times when I feel like a giant, all too aware of the presence of my height. Being at the Ambassadors Theatre in the West End just the other day, I spent most of the time distracted by my desperation not to tap on the chap's shoulder who sat immediately in front of me to ask if he'd mind awfully if I could rest my legs over his shoulders. My legs were aching so much, it ruined the play!

Or having to avoid banging my head, as I duck under, what are unequivocally, aesthetically stunning, door frames in historical buildings in Canterbury. I have friends that reside in a mediaeval home in the city centre and have spent many an evening trying to avoid their door frames, only to hit my head, as the wine continues to flow by the time twilight arrives. I live to tell the tale!

As the youth of today seems to tower over us, surely the height of door frames (and other structures) is an issue for many. If height is a great advantage – a perception, perceived by most as superior – and if you think about it, there are 'privileges [frequently] manifest[ed] in height' (Ginsberg et al); then why are houses not designed to embrace and celebrate our tallness?

We can be assured by the law of physics, which tells us we will never become giants! So, adjustments now to design, would be sustained for future generations.

Psychology and culture tell us: 'there's this default yielding response that people have to be the tallest person in the room. They project an expectation of that person being more gifted, a better leader, stronger. These patterns have been reinforced consciously' (Ginsberg et al). Overtime, and up until this week if I'd been in a situation where I was discussing the correlations between height and health, I would have been inclined to say tallness equates to healthiness. But, alas, fellow readers, I think I have been the victim of brainwashing: that bigger is better!! My perception has always leant towards thinking that tallness equates to greater value – somehow.

In fact, this is not the case. It is the opposite. According to scientific research, and there has been extensive studies in this field, the links between height and longevity of life conclude that the shorter you are, the longer you'll live! In Poland a study of nearly 900,000 people was carried out between 2004 – 2008, the findings concluded were as follows:

In general, taller individuals had lower age at death compared to shorter ones, and this relationship was more pronounced and consistent in men. To sum up, these findings do not comport with the traditional belief that taller individuals live longer. The role of several possible biological mechanisms pertinent to enhanced longevity in smaller individuals was emphasised, and these biological factors were discussed. (Chmielewski)

Flabbergasted, an understatement and not intending on being an alarmist, but how possible is it to shrink ourselves? The theory that 'shrinking in order to live in a situation of relative abundance is one of the evolutionary principles' is thought provoking, (Ginsberg et al) and certainly one that has altered my way of thinking.

In the meantime, as we continue to be overtaken by our children who are sprouting at startling rates, surely this needs to be considered by current and future house builders.

Whilst shrinking ourselves could have long term longevity for life expectancy, I fear the likelihood is we will continue to grow.

There is nothing quick, simple or likely to happen in our lifetime, and the continued annoyance of being too tall for certain structures will continue. What then is the answer, personally the elegance and sense of space a Dutch home offers gets my vote, even if we are only talking aesthetics, but then I am above average in height.

Should planning design of structural spaces remain the same, and us taller folks continue to suffer the pain, or should we embrace the Dutch style and design and build with greater compassion for our inhabitants?

Resources sourced and read.

Agency France-Presse. “Scientists try to answer why Dutch people are so tall.” The Guardian. 8th April, 2015. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/08/scientists-try-to-answer-why-dutch-people-are-so-tall

Chmielewski, Piotr. “The Relationship between adult stature and longevity: Tall men are unlikely to outlive their short peers – Evidence from a study of all adult deaths in Polan in the years 2004 – 2008.” Anthropological Review, Dec 2016. //www.researchgate.net/publication/311624308_The_relationship_between_adult_stature_and_longevity_Tall_men_are_unlikely_to_outlive_their_short_peers_-_Evidence_from_a_study_of_all_adult_deaths_in_Poland_in_the_years_2004-2008 (Chmielewski)

Ginsberg, Alexandra Daisy et al. “If You're Reading This, You're Too Tall.” Jods, Sept 12, 2018. //jods.mitpress.mit.edu/pub/issue4-hendricks-messina/release/4 (Ginsberg)

Scharping, Nathaniel. “Do Giants Exist: What Does the Evidence say About Real-Life Giants?” Discover, September 21, 2023. //www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/did-giants-ever-exist-the-question-isnt-as-crazy-as-it-sounds (Scharping)

Yacob Mohd, Naziaty. “Human Dimensions & Minimum Standards.” Life is a Design Thesis, January 5, 2020. https://designthesis.wordpress.com/2020/01/05/human-dimensions-and-minimum-standards/ (Yacob Mohd)

World Population Review.  19 January 2024, //worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/average-height-by-country Main Page. (World Population Review)

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