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YOUR SPINE
Expect to lose a few centimetres in height as you grow older, says Australian spinal surgeon Dr Randolph Gray. “The average loss of height from 30-70 years is around 3cm in men and 5cm in women. This then increases to 5cm in men and 8cm in women in the next decade of life.”
The spine shrinks due to a normal age-related degenerative process, which includes the discs, vertebrae and joints.
“The loss of disc and vertebral body height will also increase kyphosis ( forward bending of the spine) and contribute to apparent loss of height,” Gray says.
You should look out for a rapid loss of height and a change in posture, such as