The Shortcomings of Maize: Using Tipu to Assess Maize Consumption and its Impact on Stature and Limb Proportions Among the Maya

A reliance on maize among the ancient and modern Maya has been reasoned to cause short statures and short legs compared to overall height. The goal of this study was to test this proposition using a sample of contact period Maya from the site of Tipu in western Belize. Long bone length data from 100 individuals were compared to that from two other prehistoric maize agriculturalist societies: the Schild site in Illinois and Pecos Pueblo in New Mexico. Four hypotheses were tested: 1) Tipu would be the shortest, 2) Tipu would have the shortest femora relative to tibiae, 3) Tipu would have the shortest femora relative to humeri, and 4) Tipu would be osteologically typical of the Maya and greater Mesoamerica. All were made with the prediction that maize consumption negatively affected limb length and stature. Hypotheses 1 and 2 were supported. Hypothesis 3 was rejected; Tipu’s humerus:femur ratios were proportional compared to other groups, suggesting that short statures and legs are not specific to the Maya. Lastly, Tipu showed no significant difference compared to ancient populations from the Valley of Mexico, supporting hypothesis 4. This study contributes a greater understanding of Mesoamerican stature by suggesting that it is not caused primarily by maize and factors such as genetics, latitude, and climate are potential contributing factors. Lastly, this study contributes to a better understanding of growth and development by suggesting that biological stress manifests not only in disproportional upper:lower body ratios but in disproportionality within legs