Sultan Kosen, Tallest Man In The World, 2 Meters 47 Centimeters, Turkey

At 2.57 m (8 ft 5 in), Leonid Stadnyk, of Zhytomyr Oblast, Ukraine, is believed to be the world's tallest living man, although his height is disputed because of his refusal to be measured. The current proven tallest man is Sultan Kösen, of Turkey, who stands at 2.47 m (8 ft 1 in), overtaking previous world-record holder Bao Xishun, of Inner Mongolia, China, who is 2.36 m (7 ft 9 in) (He Pingping, the former shortest man in the world, was also from Inner Mongolia). The tallest man in modern history was Robert Pershing Wadlow (1918–1940), from Illinois, in the United States, who was 2.72 m (8 ft 11 in) at the time of his death. Until her death in 2008, Sandy Allen was the tallest woman in the world, at 2.32 m (7 ft 7 1⁄2 in). Yao Defen of China is claimed to be the tallest living woman in the world at 2.33 m (7 ft 7 1⁄2 in), but this is not confirmed by the Guinness Book of World Records.
The maximal height that a person attains in adulthood is not maintained throughout a long life. Depending on sex, genetic and environmental factors, shrinkage of stature may begin in middle age in some individuals but is universal in the extremely aged. This decrease in height is due to such factors as decreased height of inter-vertebral discs because of desiccation, atrophy of soft tissues and postural changes secondary to degenerative disease.
The study of height is known as auxology. Growth has long been recognized as a measure of the health of individuals, hence part of the reasoning for the use of growth charts. For individuals, as indicators of health problems, growth trends are tracked for significant deviations and growth is also monitored for significant deficiency from genetic expectations. Genetics is a major factor in determining the height of individuals, though it is far less influential in regard to populations. Average height is increasingly used as a measure of the health and wellness (standard of living and quality of life) of populations. Attributed as a significant reason for the trend of increasing height in parts of Europe is the egalitarian populations where proper medical care and adequate nutrition are relatively equally distributed. Changes in diet (nutrition) and a general rise in quality of health care and standard of living are the cited factors in the Asian populations. Average height in the United States has remained essentially stagnant since the 1950s even as the racial and ethnic background of residents has shifted. Severe malnutrition is known to cause stunted growth in North Korean, portions of African, certain historical European, and other populations. Diet (in addition to needed nutrients; such things as junk food and attendant health problems such as obesity), exercise, fitness, pollution exposure, sleep patterns, climate (Allen's rule and Bergmann's Rule for example), and even happiness (psychological well-being) are other factors that can affect growth and final height.