Why women prefer tall men...

According to a new study, women find taller men attractive because they pack a more powerful punch, making them more effective fighters

Are you more attracted to tall men? Well, researchers say it's all down to their perceived fighting ability! According to a new theory, women are more attracted to statuesque males because in evolutionary terms they are better at fighting - taller men can throw a more powerful punch making them more useful to the opposite sex.

The scientists also found that our prehistoric ancestors punched hardest when they stood on two legs, suggesting that fighting was the driving force behind the evolution of upright walking.

'From the perspective of sexual selection theory, women are attracted to powerful males, because powerful males can protect them and their children from other males,’ says Dr David Carrier, from the University of Utah.

‘Early in human evolution, an enhanced capacity to strike downward on an opponent may have given tall males a greater capacity to compete for mates and to defend their resources,’ he says. ‘If this were true, females who chose to mate with taller males would have had greater fitness for survival.’

Dr Carrier studied the power of punches by male martial arts experts and boxers. According to the journal PLoS One, Men hit with more force when they were standing and could punch twice as hard when striking downwards.

Some scientists have argued that women prefer taller men because their height indicates good genes but Dr Carrier insists: ‘If that were the whole story, I would expect the same to be true for men – than men would be attracted to taller women – but men are attracted to women of average height or even shorter.'

Do you agree with the findings? Or does height make no difference to your taste in men?

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