Research finds British women go for men who are taller than them

Only one in 25 couples have a woman who is taller than the man

Couple
Couple
(Image credit: REX)

Only one in 25 couples have a woman who is taller than the man

A study has found that men are taller than women in the vast majority of British couples, with only one in 25 couples having a woman who is taller than her partner.

British and Dutch researchers used data on around 12,000 families from around the UK to look at height differences.

The average height of women studied was 5ft 4.5in, while the average man was 5ft 10in.

The study also found women don't like their men to be too tall, as only one in seven cases had a man who was 10in or more taller than the woman.

But in an exception to the rule, very tall men tended to settle down with short women.

Newcastle University researcher Professor Daniel Nettle, who was involved in the study, said this could be explained by the fact those at the extremes of height have less choice.

Professor Nettle added it is likely that those of around average height pair off first, simply because they have more choice, leaving the others with fewer potential partners to pick from.

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