orld’s tallest people are not so tough to find… isn’t it?
Robert Pershing Wadlow (World’s tallest man ever)
Robert Pershing Wadlow (February 22, 1918 – July 15, 1940) was the tallest person in history for whom there is irrefutable evidence. Wadlow is sometimes known as the Alton Giant or Giant of Illinois because he was born and grew up in Alton, Illinois.
World's Tallest Man Ever… Robert Pershing Wadlow
Wadlow reached 8 ft 11.1 in (2.720 m) in height and weighed 439 lb (199 kg) at his death at age 22. His great size and his continued growth in adulthood was due to hypertrophy of his pituitary gland, which results in an abnormally high level of human growth hormone. He showed no indication of an end to his growth even at the time of his death.
Wadlow was born to Addie Johnson and Harold Wadlow in Alton, Illinois on February 22, 1918, and was the oldest of five children.
Wadlow’s size began to take its toll: he required leg braces to walk, and had little feeling in his legs and feet. Despite these difficulties, Wadlow never used a wheelchair.
Wadlow was an American celebrity; he was well-known due to his 1936 U.S. tour with the Ringling Brothers Circus and his 1938 promotional tour with the INTERCO. He continued participating in tours and public appearances, though only in his normal street clothes.
On July 4, 1940, during a professional appearance at the Manistee National Forest Festival, a faulty brace irritated his ankle, causing a blister and subsequent infection. Doctors treated him with a blood transfusion and emergency surgery, but his condition worsened and on July 15, 1940, he died in his sleep at age 22.
Sultan Kosen (World’s tallest man alive)
The tallest man living is Sultan Kösen (Turkey, b.10 December 1982) who measured 251 cm (8 ft 3 in) in Ankara, Turkey, on 08 February 2011.
World's Tallest man Alive… Sultan Kosen
The part-time farmer was the first man over 8 ft (2.43 m) to be measured by Guinness World Record in over 20 years.
Indeed, GWR only knows of 10 confirmed or reliable cases in history of humans reaching 8 ft or more.
Sultan also holds the records for widest hand span and largest feet on a living person.
Speaking at the time of his entry into the Guinness World Records family he said: ‘I never imagined I would be in the book, I dreamed about it, but it was still a huge surprise’.
Sultan is one of five siblings, with three brothers and one sister,. The rest of his family, including his mum and dad, are all ‘normal’ sized.
Because of his extreme height he was never able to finish school but works occasionally as a farmer to support his family.
He describes one of the advantages of being tall as being able to help out his mum out with jobs such as changing a broken light bulb and hanging curtains.
Disadvantages to his height he lists include not being able to find clothes or shoes that fit or finding it extremely hard to fit into a regular size car.
Like every young man in their twenties, Sultan enjoys listening to music, playing computer games and watching movies.
Zeng Jinlian (World’s tallest woman ever)
Zeng Jinlian (June 25, 1964 – February 13, 1982) was the tallest woman ever verified in medical history, taking over Jane Bunford’s record. Zeng is also the only woman counted among the fourteen people who have reached verified heights of eight feet or more.
World's Tallest Woman Ever… Zeng Jinlian
At the time of her death at the age of 17, in Hunan, China, Zeng would have been 8 feet, 1.75 inches (249 cm.) tall (she could not stand straight because of a severely deformed spine), was the tallest person in the world at the time. In the year between Don Koehler’s death and her own, she surpassed fellow “eight-footers” Gabriel Estêvão Monjane and Suleiman Ali Nashnush.
Yao Defen (World’s tallest woman alive)
Yao Defen of China, (born July 15, 1972) is the tallest living woman, as recognized by Guinness World Records. She stands 7 ft 8 in tall (2.33 m), weighs 200 kilograms (440 lb), and has size 26 (UK) / 78 (EU) feet. Her gigantism is due to a tumor in her pituitary gland.
World's Tallest Woman Alive… Yao Defen
Yao Defen was born to poor farmers in the town of Liuan in the Anhui province of Shucheng County.
Yao currently suffers from hypertension, heart disease, poor nutrition, and osteoporosis. Acromegaly often results from a tumor within the pituitary gland that causes excess growth hormone secretion. As a result, the body’s features become enlarged. It can also delay the onset of puberty as is the case with Yao. She has no secondary sexual characteristics. Potential complication lacking surgery includes blindness and eventually premature death.
She lives near her mother (who is only four feet, eight inches tall) in a small village in rural China.
