Mental Edge
Two Environmental Factors That Determine Height!
By Irwin Cunningham
Body Image Solutions
Adult male height could be partially influenced by physical and environmental factors such as the amount of sunlight during the early stages of life.
During early childhood, many of the bodies physiological mechanisms develop. Early childhood is a critical period in determing final adult height to some degree. You see, during the first months of an infants life, cellular reproduction occurs at an astounding rate and physiological changes such as bone growth proliferate.
During this period of an infants life, a few external stimuli are critical in determing final adult height. One of the most important external influences is sunlight which provides plenty of vitamin D.
A study conducted in Spain, which is a country known to have a high number of hours of sunlight, concluded that final adult male height was influenced by early childhood environmental factors. Infants who received greater amounts of sunlight (particularly those born during summer) were an average 1.7 cm taller than their counterparts born in winter. The results were conclusive only for males and not females.
This suggests that hormonal influences during early adolescence determines final adult height as well. Since female estrogen levels increase during early adolescence the difference between male and female adult height is markedly different.
Another environmental factor that determines final adult height is stress. A study conducted in China determined that the amount of stress in a young adult population ages 15-29 was directly correlated with the amount of environmental stress. Hormonal responses from stress blocked important chemicals that influenced adult height.
The study proved that environmental stress promoted certain biochemical inhibitors that influenced bone growth and linear height. A comparison was made between students who came from low income backgrounds and students that were from elite backgrounds. Since education amongst poor Chinese families is extremely important the stress levels were greater and proved to be a signifant factor in their final height.
Chinese students that came from priviledged elite backgrounds also experienced some form of stress but did not compare to the amount of stress of the poor students and thus were taller as a result.
Suggestions:
These studies suggest that you should AVOID STRESS and try to get enough sunlight if you want to avoid stunted growth. Stress stunts growth and sunlight increases it. If you want to be taller, you need to consider how to handle environmental stresses and develop a plan that will reduce the amount of stress you experience during your daily life.
One way to combat stress is by releasing all your toxins in a health spa or sauna. Sweat is a precursor to stress relief. Here is an example that proves this statement. When someone gets angry or stressed to the point of no return, what happens? The body reacts aggressively, emotionally, and physically in order to relieve/release the stress and bad toxins that are produced. This aggressiveness is responsible for sweat. You sweat because your body needs to release the bad chemicals you produced. Sweat is similar to releasing toxins in a sauna.
If you are having a difficult day, sweat it out in a sauna or spa and you will be doing yourself a favor; you will be avoiding stunted growth.....***
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