Plenty of vertically challenged men have an issue with their height, spending a lifetime feeling like they’re just not tall enough to fit the definition of a “real man” (whatever that is!). But all along, it turns out that shorter men have nothing to worry about, because they’re going to live longer than their taller compatriots anyway!

Research by boffins from the University of Hawaii, which was published on the Plos One website, revealed that shorter men have longer lifespans.

According to the study, which looked at a group of 8,003 men, the shorter the man the longer the life.

Results from the research, which was started in 1965 and included American men of Japanese ancestry born between 1900 and 1919, showed that those in the oldest age group (who were aged 65-68 years old) were on average 4.6 centimetres shorter than those in the youngest age group (45-49 years old).

The main differences in survival rates showed up when the men reached the age of 80, however. Comparing the “survival curves” (scientific talk, signifying the curves on a graph) between men who were 165cm or taller, those who were 158cm or shorter, and all those in between, there was no huge difference between the groups for survival before the age of 80, but the curves in the follow-up for those groups differed significantly between 80 years old and 95.

A gene linked to longevity, the exotic-sounding FOXO3, is thought to be behind the findings, with a protective version of this gene leading to smaller body size during the early years.

However complicated the science involved, there are plenty of men out there who are going to be very chuffed with this news. On the other hand, of course, it’s not going to be music to the ears of the tallies…

Let us know what you think about this latest research and whether it affects you!…