Shrinking

Funnily enough, I had a medical check last week and I am really not sure why I was weighed or measured as it was an echocardiogram. I was quite pleased to see that I weigh and measure what I pretty much have throughout my adult life. I am also happy to report that my heart seems to be working pretty well.

Mawbroonsback
I had the same experience at my last medical checkup?
I lost one inch in height. Very depressing. But my doctor said it is common. Still not happy about it. Now I'm shorter than my 13 year old grandson.

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Does anyone know why it happens?

I presume we just 'take up the slack" I a sideways direction!

The vertebrae get closer together as the discs shrink in height.

Read somewhere that weighing patients when they go to the doctors for whatever reason is one way of tackling obesity crisis, so they can tactfully suggest healthier eating, more exercise etc. If they did BP checks at the same time also maybe useful. Just back to time I suppose, as that would all add to appointment slot minutes.

I ve lost 2.5 inches which annoys me as I liked my height and I don’t want to be little but I ve now become ‘little nan’ to my huge grandson however at work there is another lady with my name smaller than me so she’s always ‘little xxx’ and I m ‘big xxx’

Thank you mumofmadboys - that makes sense. As does the fear those missing inches (and then some) have merely relocated to my hips

I wasn't pleased to find out recently that I,too, have lost nearly two inches in height.Because I have short arms it means I have to ask for help to reach thing both in the supermarkets and in moderately high cupboards at home.

I am not happy about this either. Like others I am a whole inch and a half down on what I should be. What I want to know is can we use our proper height or should we use our actual height when calculating BMI. The former is far less brutal.

I tell myself that this generation is much taller !
Though not small in stature myself, I have lost about an inch or so in height from my once 5'7. It's to do with the lack of muscle strength/power we once had in holding our bodies together , it's that that shrinks thus reducing height in many.

I've lost an inch in height, too, and am now a short 5ft 1. My sons tower over me, at 5ft 11 and 6ft 2.

I've lost two inches according to my hospital records.
I'm quite pleased really as I hated being 5'7".

Alima, try using the smart BMI calculator

* mumofmadboys*, can I ask you why my legs now seem to be getting shorter, on top of the usual height loss? When I rode my new (deliberately lower) bike this week, I found it harder to get up onto the saddle. Can leg bones also settle down on top of each other?

Am I going to finish up knee high?

That was to mumofmadboys.

Gonegirl thank You! That Smart thingy is wonderful! There am I dragging around 2 excess stones and it tells me I am in the correct weight range, brilliant. Also tells me that at 66 there is nothing to gain by losing weight! Still feel fat but feel loads better about it! Will read it again when I have my glasses to hand.

Alima [thumbs up]

Yes - I was just over 5ft and now I'm just below. Unfortunately my weight has not decreased accordingly. My body seems to be going for a square shape! The smart BMI says I'm fine so who am I to argue with that!

Gone girl I am not aware of any studies to suggest leg length decreases with age. The cartilage in our knees wears thinner with age so possibly the tibia and femur are closer together. It may be so!

Theres the loss of muscle mass including the muscles that pad the bottom of the feet and arches also begin to fall-

I lay down on the hardwood floor a couple of times a day to stretch and relax my spine-