The biological standard of living in Suriname, c. 1870-1975

•The three different height samples that were considered showed that successive birth cohorts in every sample tended to be taller.•The difference in physical stature between African and Hindustani Surinamese remained fairly constant over time, 4-5 cm.•Increases in the per capita availability of calories and protein, and a decline in the infant mortality rate, reflecting a less unhealthy disease environment, seem to have contributed to the height increase.

The physical stature of Surinamese soldiers is estimated to have increased by more than 3 cm between 1870 and 1909. In the subsequent four decades, the increase in adult male and female height amounted to 0.3-0.5 cm and 0.9-1.0 cm per decade, respectively. This increase in height continued and accelerated during the second half of the twentieth century. Height increase among African and Hindustani Surinamese males and females was similar. Height differences between African and Hindustani Surinamese were therefore fairly constant over time, at 4-5 cm. Other indicators of nutritional and health status, such as infant mortality, showed continuous improvement, whereas per capita calorie and protein availability improved in the twentieth century.