Robert Pershing Wadlow was born on February 22nd, 1918 in Alton, Illinois. Right from the start, it was clear that he was far from typical – he gained weight and size rapidly durng his first few months of life. It wasn’t until 1929 when doctors discovered that he had hypertrophy (enlargement) of his pituitary gland – the gland responsible for dictating human growth hormone (HGH).
When Robert Wadlow reached adulthood, he was measured at an incredible 8 feet 11.1 inches tall – making him the tallest man in medical history with irrefutable evidence. He weighed a staggering 490 pounds and wore shoes sized 37AA – the largest ever produced by a shoe company at the time.
Throughout Robert’s life, he achieved a number of impressive feats due to his extraordinary height; he once appeared in an advertisement for the Barnum & Bailey Circus as ‘the world’s tallest man’, performed charity work for The Shriners and even joined the International Shoe Company as a professional shoe salesman!
Robert passed away in 1940 due to complications caused by an infected ankle blister. His death marked the end of an incredible life for one of mankind’s most remarkable individuals; his legacy lives on through his many stories and achievements.
The Causes of Robert Wadlow’s Unusually Tall Height
The cause of Robert Wadlow’s extreme height can be attributed to a medical condition known as hypertrophy of the pituitary gland. This condition occurs when the pituitary gland, located at the base of the brain, produces an abnormally high amount of human growth hormone (HGH). While all humans produce this hormone, people with hypertrophy experience an excessive and ongoing production. In Wadlow’s case, this caused him to grow to an astonishing 8 feet 11.1 inches tall.
In addition to his pituitary gland abnormality, Wadlow’s parents were also unusually tall for their respective generations. His father was 6 feet 6 inches and his mother 5 feet 10 inches – both significantly taller than average for their time period. It is likely that this familial genetic predisposition contributed to Wadlow’s extraordinary height.
The Tallest Person Ever Recorded in History
The tallest person that ever lived was Robert Pershing Wadlow, who was born on February 22, 1918 in Alton, Illinois. He stands as the tallest man in medical history for which there is irrefutable evidence. At the time of his death in 1940 at age 22, he measured 2.72 meters (8 feet 11.1 inches) tall.
Robert Wadlow showed signs of gigantism from a young age and by the time he was eight years old he had already reached a height of 1.88 meters (6 feet 2 inches). From then until his death at age 22, Wadlow only continued to grow and eventually became the tallest person ever recorded in medical history.
Wadlow’s growth was believed to be caused by an over-active pituitary gland which produced too much of the human growth hormone. This caused him to have a larger than normal body frame and he weighed an impressive 199 kilograms (439 pounds) at one point during his life, despite having a normal diet and exercise routine. He wore custom-made shoes with heels that were 36 centimeters (14 inches) high in order to keep up with his rapid growth rate and special braces had to be made for his legs and back due to the extreme weight strain it put on them.
Despite being so tall, Robert Wadlow neer let it get in the way of living a normal life; he ran errands for his family, drove vehicles, took part in sports activities such as basketball and attended school like any other child his age would have done at the time. His extraordinary height earned him many nicknames including “Giant of Illinois”, “The Alton Giant”, and “The Human Colossus” – titles that continue to live on today as a testament to this remarkable man’s accomplishment of becoming the tallest person ever recorded in medical history.
Size of a 37AA Bra
37AA is an exceptionally large shoe size and is equivalent to a European size 75 or a UK size 36. It measures 47cm (18 ½ in) in length, and is the largest shoe size ever recorded in history. This size was worn by Robert Wadlow (USA, 1918 – 1940), who was the tallest ever man at 2.72m (8 ft 11.1 in).
Conclusion
Robert Pershing Wadlow was an extraordinary figure in medical history, being the tallest man with documented evidence. His incredible height of 8 ft 11.1 in was likely due to a hypertrophy of his pituitary gland, which produces human growth hormone (HGH). This remarkable height surpassed the average human height, and for most of his life he lived with the challenges that came with it. Although he passed away at 22 years old, his legacy still lives on as one of the tallest people who ever lived.
