China’s mysterious dwarf village leaves scientists baffled

A reason behind the phenomena has never been established

Across the globe, one in 25,000 people have restricted growth, also known as dwarfism. This a genetic condition characterised by unusually short height.

In the Sichuan Province village of Yangsi though, roughly 50 per cent of inhabitants have dwarfism.

The people living there have all been born and raised in the village, leaving scientists baffled by the phenomenon.

News18 reports that the scientists have tried testing the water in the area, the food Yangsi residents are eating and even the soil to try and find a reason for the high proportion of dwarves in the village. But they have yet to find any correlation.

There have been a number of suggestions from locals for the phenomenon though. An elder of the village reportedly said that a disease struck the village one night and spread among children aged 5 to 7.

They claimed the disease stopped the children growing.

Other unusual explanations include an alleged high level of mercury in the village's soil and a belief that the dwarfism was caused by a poisonous gas released by Japan towards China.

However, there is no evidence to back up either of these claims.

The Chinese government has never denied the existence of the village, but foreign tourists or travellers are not allowed to visit.

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