One nice and simple indicator of how much healthier we all are than we used to be is our height. Today we have a higher income, more sanitary living conditions and better education about health and nutrition than ever before. Add to that lower infant mortality and fewer mouths to feed due to smaller family sizes, and it means that the average person grew up with better nutrition than our ancestors, and it shows in our average height.
For example, by 1971 the average British 21 year old male was 10 cm taller than they were a century earlier in 1871:
And this trend is not just affecting UK males, it's repeated across the globe. The following graph shows upward trends in average height of around 10 cm per person between 1810 and 1980 in every region of the world:
It seems that from skeletal remains found during archaeological digs that average height in Europe bumbled along at around 170 cm for the past two thousand years, before rocketing up to closer to 180 cm as a result of the industrial revolution.
You can say what you like about modern lifestyles, but the stats show we are healthier than ever before.
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