So, my last column was about Dutch people being the tallest in the world.

There is even a national organization, Klub Lange Mensen (Tall People's Club), which throughout its 50 years has worked to protect tall people's interests by, for example, having ceilings raised and persuading hotels to offer 20-cm bed extensions.

But while members may feel at a disadvantage, many statistics suggest that being tall, especially in men, offers considerable advantages in politics, business and with women.

Though this topic is somewhat of an excursion from my usual Dutch journey, it's quite interesting, so I hope you will bear with me.

Statistics show, for example, that out of the 44 U.S. presidents, only five were more than an inch (2.54 cm) below average height.

A 2005 U.S. survey of Fortune 500 CEOs found that they were on average 1.83 meters tall, or approximately 7.5 cm taller than the average American man, and 30 percent of them were over 1.88 meters while only 4 percent of the U.S. population is that tall.

Statistics even show tall men make more money.

A 2003 review of four large U.S. and U.K. studies led by Timothy Judge, a University of Florida professor, found that a person who is 7 inches (17.8 cm) taller, e.g., 6 feet (1.83 meters) versus 5 feet 5 inches (1.65 meters) would be expected to earn $5,525 more per year — or $789 more per inch, per year.

Tall men also have more success with women.

In January 2000, the journal Nature published a study on 3,200 men between ages 25 and 60 that found taller men were more likely to get married and have children. Men with children were on average 1.2 inches (3 cm) taller than those without while married men were on average 1 inch taller than bachelors.

A survey in the '60s of 6,000 adolescents showed that the tallest boys were the first to date — and that the only ones more successful with the ladies were "those who got to choose their own clothes."

From his study, professor Judge concluded that our modern appreciation for tall people derives from our consciousness from way back.

"When humans evolved as a species and lived in the jungles or on the plain, they ascribed leaderlike qualities to tall people because they thought they would be better able to protect them," said Judge then.

"Although that was thousands of years ago, evolutionary psychologists would argue that some of those old patterns operate in our perceptions today."

So tall men seem to have better jobs, higher incomes and more success with women.

And do tall Dutch men feel those advantages?

"Well, I never thought about it since many men are my height here (1.9 meters)," said friend Ralph.

The handsome 40-year-old, however, added that the opposite may be true, citing the example of a Dutch male friend who is unlucky in work and love, and there seems to be no reason for this, other than his lack of inches.

Going back to his personal life, Ralph said that his height could have been a contributing factor for why he married Connie, a beautiful Maltese scientist.s

"Well, it is true that the first thing I noticed about Ralph was his height and broad shoulders, and I thought: 'how nice,' " recalled Connie smiling, adding that Maltese people, being the shortest in Europe, may have an extra longing for heights.

"But I soon noticed how sweet Ralph is and how concerned he is about other people. So it's not just the height!" she said.