Women with shorter legs may have higher risk of liver diseases

Almost 4,300 women of 60 - 79 were randomly selected from 23 British towns for an interesting study that investigated the separate associations of leg length and trunk length with levels of four liver enzymes: ALT, GGT, AST and ALP, each of these "reflects a different aspect of potential liver damage". The researchers found that women with shorter legs had higher levels of ALT, GGT and ALP ( an indicator of bone disease) while trunk length was positively associated with ALT and inversely associated with ALP.


They concluded that adult liver function is affected by childhood exposures, such as good nutrition, as reflected in leg length. This may suggest "common childhood influences on liver development and adult risk of diabetes and heart disease."


Source: "The associations between height components (leg and trunk length) and adult levels of liver enzymes" Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health 2008;62:48-53 (abstract only)