Short legs linked to higher liver risk

 
PUBLICATION: Times Colonist (Victoria)
DATE: 2007.12.19 
SOURCE: Reuters
WORD COUNT: 98

Short legs linked to higher liver risk

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- Women with short legs may have a higher risk of
liver disease, with both probably caused by diet or other factors
early in life, British researchers reported this week.

Their study of 3,600 women showed that the shorter a woman's legs were,
the more likely she was to have signs of liver damage.

The findings fit in with other studies linking leg length with diabetes
and heart disease, Abigail Fraser of the University of Bristol and
colleagues said.

Fraser's team looked at women aged 60 to 79 who were taking part in a
larger health study, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and
Community Health.

Leg length can point to how well a person was nourished in early
childhood.