The Claim

Declining consumption of high-quality animal proteins, particularly from dairy and pork, and increasing intake of cereals and high-glycemic carbohydrates in affluent Western countries are associated with a reversal in the long-term upward trend of adult male height, suggesting suboptimal nutrition during growth periods may be limiting physical development.

Source: Back to the pre-industrial age? FAOSTAT statistics of food supply reveal radical dietary changes accompanied by declining body height, rising obesity rates, and declining phenotypic IQ in affluent Western countries

What the research says

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Supports
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Challenges
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These are independent scores, not a percentage. Higher-grade studies count more, so a single strong opposing study can outweigh several weaker ones.

Correlation
1 study reviewed
In plain English

In affluent Western countries, a shift away from animal proteins like dairy and pork toward more cereals and sugary carbohydrates coincides with a slowdown in the historical increase of adult male height, indicating that nutritional changes during childhood and adolescence may be affecting growth.

See the scientific wording

Declining consumption of high-quality animal proteins, particularly from dairy and pork, and increasing intake of cereals and high-glycemic carbohydrates in affluent Western countries are associated with a reversal in the long-term upward trend of adult male height, suggesting suboptimal nutrition during growth periods may be limiting physical development.

What the research says

1 study
  1. Study: Back to the pre-industrial age? FAOSTAT statistics of food supply reveal radical dietary changes accompanied by declining body height, rising obesity rates, and declining phenotypic IQ in affluent Western countries

    The study found that when people in wealthy countries started eating less meat and dairy and more bread and sugary foods, boys stopped growing taller over time — suggesting their diets weren’t giving them the right nutrients to grow properly.

Score breakdown, mechanism chain, raw evidence, ideal studies needed & 1 supporting studies

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