The World's Tallest Five-Year-Old? Karan Singh Is 5ft 7in

The World's Tallest Five-Year-Old? Karan Singh Is 5ft 7in
Barcroft

Karan Singh is believed to be the world's tallest five-year-old.

Standing at a whopping 5ft 7inches, he is just three inches shorter than of the average height of a British man.

At his birth in 2008, Karan made it into the Guinness Book of World Records for being the tallest and heaviest baby to be born. And since then, his incredible growth spurt has shown no signs of slowing down.

According to his father Sanjay, 35, from India, Karan was born weighing a whopping 7kg (15.4lbs) and measuring over 2ft (63cm).

Sanjay told Barcroft Media: "When he was born, he was unusually tall and heavy. We thought that he might be suffering from some kind of medical condition. But the doctors said he was healthy and fine.

"The above normal height and weight even shocked some doctors. Then Guinness recognised Karan as the heaviest and the tallest baby born."

And it seems that the secret to Karan's immense height lies in his genes.

Sanjay is 6ft 7in tall - while his mother Shweatlana Singh, 26, towers over her neighbours at 7ft 3in.

At one point she was crowned India's tallest women and continues to be known as one of the tallest women in South Asia.

Sanjay added: "We are a tall family. If I go somewhere, I find myself to be the tallest person in the gathering. But when I come home, I am dwarfed in presence of my wife. Maybe a couple of years on, my son will also make me feel like a dwarf."

Barcroft

Karan enjoys all the attention that he gets in his neighbourhood in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India, and has had nothing but support from the local community.

"I don't get bullied by anyone here. But they all say that I am cheating when we play basketball or cricket," said Karan, who will celebrate his sixth birthday in November.

"I am bigger than them all."

Karan, who goes to a primary school, wants to become a professional basketball player when he grows up - and has an able coach in his mother.

Shweatlana works as a basketball coach in local schools and even played the game at the national level.

But incredibly, she continues to gain height - and is concerned it could harm her health and have an impact on Karan in the future.

She said: "I gain around 1.5 inches of height every couple of years. This is due to excess growth hormone.

"I sometimes fear that this might even have consequences for Karan. But I know he is doing fine and he will grow up to be a nice and healthy person."

However, Shweatlana does acknowledge there have been tricky times in the past. "It is always tough. The hardest part is finding the clothes that fit him," she explained. "When he was baby, kids stores would never have his size of diapers. Thank God, we are beyond that stage.

"Now, I just buy him adult size garments. They fit him perfectly well."

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