8 surprising benefits to being petite (2024)

If you’ve ever seen your size as a disadvantage, stop right there.

Being shorter than average might not get you a career as a catwalk model but there are loads of benefits to being petite and being able to shop at Short Girls Club is just one of them. Here is our list of eight reasons why you should embrace your height (or lack of) and make the most of being small.

  1. Our reactions are faster

People who are petite are more agile and have quicker reactions than those who are tall. This is because the messages sent from your nerves to your brain have less far to travel, making your reflex actions and responses seem more instant. Shorter bodies also find it easier to bend, twist and spin. This is one reason that petite athletes excel in sports like martial arts, gymnastics, diving, skating, skiing and snowboarding. Shorter people are also typically better at long distance running and cycling.

  1. Longer life expectancy

Smaller bodies require fewer resources to support themselves. The taller you are, the more cells you have in your body which means there is more chance of something going wrong and mutations developing which could cause cancer. The highest proportion of centenarians in Europe are found in Villagrande Strisaili in Sardinia, where the average height among the older men is just 5ft 3. Research carried out there found that taller members of the population typically lived two years less than their smaller neighbours. Another study, this time involving 1.3 million people in Spain, found that every extra centimetre of height knocked 0.7 years off a person’s life expectancy.

  1. No worries about leg room

Many flight operators now charge passengers a premium if they want seats with extra leg room. Being short means you don’t have to worry about how to squeeze your long legs into economy seating and you are more likely to be comfortable in smaller spaces. This advantage extends beyond flying and travelling on buses and trains – it also makes trips to the theatre and cinema easier too.

  1. There’s more choice when it comes to dating

Size shouldn’t matter when it comes to love but there is no denying that height is often a key feature on people’s online dating profiles. Typically, women say they are looking for men who are taller than them, while men say they prefer women who are shorter than they are. Being petite gives you a wider choice of potential partner as let’s face it, most people are going to be taller than you are. You also don’t need to worry about towering over people when you put on a pair of heels.

  1. You are less likely to fall

When you are short, you have a lower centre of gravity, which makes your body more stable and balanced. This means you are less likely to fall over and if you do, you probably won’t hurt yourself as much as a taller person. A study carried out on American women working as nurses in the 1980s found that those who were 5ft 8 or taller were more than twice as likely to fracture a hip as those who were 5ft2 or shorter.

  1. People assume you’re younger

When you’re short, people tend to assume you are also young. This can be a real pain when you’re a teenager who is desperate to be treated like an adult but it comes into its own when you are older. You may need to make sure you always have ID on you when you are buying wine though.

  1. Beds are more comfortable

Being petite means you will find pretty much any size bed comfortable and you won’t have to worry about your feet sticking off the end or needing to lie curled up to stay under the covers.

  1. You’re in great company

It can be easy to assume that famous women are tall but one thing you will probably notice if you meet a celebrity in the flesh is that they are much smaller than they appear on screen. There are a lot of notable women who may be lacking in height but more than make up for it with talent and success. Actress Jennifer Love Hewitt is just 5ft 2, while Melissa Rauch from The Big Bang Theory measures in at 4ft 11. Both Imelda Staunton and Dawn French are 5ft, whereas Dame Judi Dench is just under 5ft 2 - and all three of them are arguably national treasures in Britain.

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8 surprising benefits to being petite (2024)

FAQs

Are there any real advantages to being short? ›

Smaller people tend to eat less and utilize fewer resources for things like clothing, which helps with conservation as more and more resources become more and more scarce. That's not all. Other studied health benefits of being short include: Less likely to suffer from age-related chronic diseases.

What are the benefits of a short height girl? ›

12 Things That Guys Love About Short Girls
  • 1 Short girls can make guys feel protective.
  • 2 They can make guys feel more manly.
  • 3 Short girls might make guys feel taller.
  • 4 They can help guys feel important.
  • 5 They look look cute and sweet.
  • 6 Short girls can feel super approachable.

Is being petite healthy? ›

According to the BBC, petite bodies would need less resources to support themselves, which in turn reduces the accumulation of toxic by-products. In studies quoted, shorter people lived on average 2 years more than the taller counterparts or even 0.7 years more per centimeter shorter.

What is the advantage of being small? ›

Shorter people are less likely to break a hip, arm or wrist from falling. This is because they don't have as far to fall, so the impact won't be as hard. Certain physical environments, such as workspaces and airplanes, are less likely to cause neck, back and back problems in smaller people.

What is the evolutionary advantage of being short? ›

When humans relocated northwards, it may have been an advantage to have a more compact body structure to conserve body heat. Plus, shorter bones may have helped ward off frostbite and lower the risk of broken bones.

Is being short good for your heart? ›

Scientists aren't sure exactly why, but people who are shorter than 5 feet 3 inches are about 50% more likely to get coronary heart disease than those who are 5 feet 8 inches or taller. The reason may be poor nutrition or infections before birth or in childhood that affect growth.

What makes short girl attractive? ›

Cuteness

Shorter stature can be perceived as a cute factor and endearing. This quality can be a strong attraction factor for guys who find cuteness charming and appealing. The adorability associated with shorter girls can create a magnetic pull in relationships.

How tall is considered a short girl? ›

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the average height of adult women worldwide is approximately 5 feet 3 inches (160 centimeters). Based on these standards, women who fall below this average height can be considered shorter than the global average.

What causes a girl to be short? ›

The most common cause of short stature is having parents whose height is below average, but a small percentage of children have a medical cause for their short stature. There are several genetic conditions that can lead to short stature, including : Noonan syndrome. Turner syndrome.

Do petite people age slower? ›

Research shows short people might live longer than their taller peers, and the reasons for that may surprise you. On average, shorter people may live an average of two to five years longer than tall people. 12 Researchers attribute this to several factors, including lower disease risk and body size composition.

What body size is considered petite? ›

Petite refers to stature not weight. Most people still think petite means skinny when in fact petite has nothing to do with weight. Petite is the term used in the fashion industry to describe a woman who is 5'3 tall or under. Petite women come in all shapes and sizes, whether they're a size 4 or 14.

Do guys prefer petite? ›

Statistically, it's only a small percentage of men who date or marry bigger girls and that means many guys currently still settle on women who they feel comfortable with size wise. That said, it is safe to come to the conclusion that petite women are a perfect match for men who are short or tall.

Are there health benefits to being short? ›

Meanwhile, those with shorter, smaller bodies may, on average, experience fewer diet-related chronic diseases and live longer. Some researchers have suggested the life expectancy gap between the sexes is, in fact, due to height differences.

What are the negatives of being short? ›

From a medical standpoint, shorter people tend to lack social confidence, and it is extremely easy for us to be deemed “obese” due to the way BMI charts are determined. The negatives of being short may seem hasty, but they definitely are not a problem in the long run once evaluated thoroughly.

What are the advantages of short legs? ›

Along with potentially living longer, another advantage of being short is your low center of gravity. Being closer to the ground makes falls less dangerous. For taller people, especially women, an important independent risk factor is for hip fracture.

Do you get benefits for being short? ›

You can qualify for disability benefits if your short stature causes you medical complications, but simply being under a certain height isn't enough to qualify for disability benefits as an adult. Short stature and dwarfism are conditions that affect thousands of people throughout the United States.

Does being short have health benefits? ›

Meanwhile, those with shorter, smaller bodies may, on average, experience fewer diet-related chronic diseases and live longer. Some researchers have suggested the life expectancy gap between the sexes is, in fact, due to height differences.

Do short people have a strength advantage? ›

This means that shorter people are relatively stronger and are more likely to be able to lift their own body weight (or more) than tall people. Short people also have an advantage when it comes to building muscle because they have more muscle mass in proportion to their body weight.

Does height give you an advantage? ›

You might be more productive.

Your height could be an indicator of what you cross off your to-do list. A paper published in the National Bureau of Economic Research found over a seven-year study that taller individuals tended to be more productive in their jobs.

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