Stature of Scotsmen aged 18 to 40 years in 1941.

Abstract

Between 1939 and 1946, over 7 million men were examined by the medical boards of the Ministry of Labour and National Service out of a possible population of about 10 million. The object of the examination was to separate the fit from the unfit for military service. The records give information about both these classes, and provide a mass of data?which could hardly have been collected by normal methods of research?about the relationship between certain body measurements, occupation, age, place of birth, and medical grade. These records have been made available to us, and are being used to estimate the distribution of stature, weight, and chest circumference in the population, and to define such variations in these measurements as can be related to age, domicile, and occupation. Knowledge about the way stature and weight vary in the population is useful in dealing with a number of practical problems, such as the assessment of nutritional status, and the standardiza tion of the dimensions of equipment and clothing. A preliminary study has been made of the data for Scotland, and the findings for stature are reported here.