Editorial on ‘ ’ socioeconomic variation in height : analysis of National Child Measurement Programme data for England ’ ’ Title

Height is the joint product of genetic and environmental influences, and is an important marker of nutritional status and health in early life. While height steadily increased throughout the 20 century as living standards improved, socio-economic inequalities in height persisted in many populations (whereby individuals from more socio-economically deprived backgrounds were, on average, shorter). It has been postulated that 20% of the variation in height observed within contemporary populations is explained by environmental exposures, such as maternal smoking in pregnancy, overcrowding, childhood illness, and diet (1). These environmental influences are thought to contribute to socio-economic inequalities in height. Research from a contemporary cohort (the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and their Children) indicated that height inequalities in middle childhood had already been established at birth, and that prenatal, genetic, or epigenetic factors were the most important drivers (2).