Through acromegaly, he measured 272 cm. His life was very dramatic

Robert Wadlow, due to his extraordinary height, has become a favorite of the crowds. However, there was a daily drama behind the enormous growth. Wadlow died at the age of 22 and measuring 272 cm. To this day, he remains the tallest man in the world in history.

1. When he was born, Robert Wadlow weighed 4 kg. However, it began to grow rapidly. After six months, he gained 10 kg. When he finished school at the age of 18, the boy was already 254 cm. Later it grew even more and reached 272 cm
2. It became a circus attraction for Americans in the 30s. Behind the popularity, however, there was pain and misunderstanding
3. It was acromegaly, a rare disease that caused Robert to die at the age of 22. To this day, no one taller than him has been born
4. Scientists have been studying human growth for years and trying to understand why humans are so different in this regard
5. More information can be found on the TvoiLokony home page

The Dutch are supposed to be the tallest. According to analyzes conducted by the local army, over the past 150 years the average height of an average 19-year-old Dutchman has jumped by as much as 20 cm. For example, at the same time, the average American has grown only 6 cm. Now an ordinary Dutch citizen measures 184 cm on average. In turn, the average citizen of the Netherlands 171 cm. But in order to give the matter an appropriate scale, it should be added that the lowest are the Mbuti Pygmies living in the Congo. Here the case is spread like this: average: 140 cm. Women: 136 cm. Male: 144.

Scientists have been arguing for years about why the Dutch jumped so much. One hypothesis is that their growth depends on welfare. The researchers from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, led by Dr. Gert Stulpa. They recognized that the diet of the Dutch, rich in meat and dairy products, and generally good living conditions in the country, could have a key impact on the achievement of dizzying growth by the Dutch.

The breakthrough, however, was the analysis of the growth of the Dutch living in the years 1935-67. As we read in Gazeta Wyborcza, “It turned out that the Dutch had the most children, whose height was 7 cm higher than the average, and who were in relationships with women of similar height to the average”. Which means that the taller ones, more often than the shorter ones, passed on their genes.

The statistically taller men had an average of 1/4 more children than the shortest men (i.e. those who were 14 cm shorter than the average). The results were compared with statistics from other countries. It also turned out that tall women in the Netherlands had more children on average than tall women of other nations

– we read in Gazeta Wyborcza.

The Dutch, however, despite being superior to the rest of Europeans, are still within the classical norm. However, when a person grows above average, a problem arises.

So far the tallest man in the world ever was an American, Robert Wadlow. And although he could count on considerable popularity, as the press wrote about his case on the front pages, Wadlow’s growth was a curse on a daily basis.

1. Boy in a plastic bubble. He spent his whole life in it

8 thousand calories a day

On February 22, 1918, a completely ordinary son was born to Harold and Addie Wadlow of Alton, Illinois. The boy named Robert gave his parents nothing to worry about. Admittedly, the boy weighed 4 kg right after birth, it did not have to be a cause for concern. These, however, came with time. With each subsequent month of life Robert grew by leaps and bounds. Six months after birth, he gained 10 kg. After a year, he already weighed 30 kg.

The 5-year-old, 169 cm tall, began to arouse considerable interest in the people around him. Suffice it to say that when he entered school, he was a head taller than his teachers, to finally measure 13 cm at the age of 223 and be hailed as “the highest scout in the world”. To feed this huge organism, Robert had to eat up to 8. calories a day.

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From the circus to the shoe advertisement

Robert Wadlow, as we read in the archival clippings of the American press from the 20s, was a cheerful boy. Hence the nickname of “gentle giant” stuck to him. He liked to photograph and play guitar. With time, he had to give up these passions as well, because his hands grew to such a size that the boy was unable to hold the instrument.

He finished school when he was 18 and he was 254 cm. He was immediately approached by companies that offered him contracts worth a lot of money, obliging Robert to travel around America and advertise various products. First, he took advantage of the entertainment offer and traveled the country with the Ringling brothers’ circus, who showed it as a curiosity. Later, the International Shoe Company hired Wadlow for advertising and made him 47 cm long special shoes.

1. She was “dead” for several hours. How was it possible to save her?

The pituitary tumor is responsible for the gigantic growth

However, what was an attraction and a business for circus performers and company bosses, became a curse for Robert. The fact that Wadlow did not stop growing was caused by the disease.

Acromegaly, because we are talking about it, is a disease that occurs as a result of excessive secretion of growth hormone. It is a chronic condition. Acromegaly leads to visible changes in appearance.

They are enlarged, among others, by hands, feet, lower jaw, nose, frontal sinuses, and tongue. The effects of acromegaly are not only external changes, but also tissue edema, enlargement of internal organs, as well as numerous symptoms caused by systemic complications.

1. Acromegaly – what does excess growth hormone lead to?

The cause of acromegaly is usually a pituitary tumor, which most often takes the form of a benign pituitary adenoma secreting excessive amounts of growth hormone – such a source of the disease is diagnosed in approx. 98%. cases.

Robert Wadlow’s Daily Fight

Robert was not quite able to coordinate his movements. His cousin, Mina Cornine, recalled years later that the boy often fell down and hit the ground with his knees. At the end of his life, he was unable to move independently. First, he was helped by a cane, then a specially prepared orthosis. Despite this, the boy lost feeling in the legs below the knees, and at the same time he “felt” the constant tingling and pain in his feet and hands.

Clothes were also quite a problem. Once, Robert’s mother sent a boy’s size to a tailor to make him a suit. The latter decided that there must have been some miscalculation and that the outfit was ultimately not made.

In 1940, a faulty orthosis rubbing against the ankle caused a bladder which became severely infected. On July 15, 1940, Robert Wadlow died at the age of 22. He was then 272 cm and weighed 222 kg.

In Alton, Illinois, a bronze statue stands by the Mississippi River in memory of Robert Wadlow. The monument is life-size.

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