Scientists at the Kwame Nkrumah University Science and Technology, Kumasi have found a simple way to guess if a young Ghanaian woman is from the drier north or the wetter south: look at the width of her left hand.
They discovered that the left hand is often wider for women from the south (forest zone) compared to those from the north (savanna zone).
The scientists studied 100 female students and took measurements of their hands.
The findings published in Scientific Reports found that the width of the left hand was the best clue, helping them guess the correct region about 66 out of 100 times.
While the length of the hands was often a bit longer for women from the north, the width of the left hand was the clearest difference.
The scientists led by Dr. Samuel Bimpong, Department of Anatomy, School of Medical Sciences think these differences might be due to people’s genes, how their bodies adapted to the different climates, or their lifestyles growing up in those areas.
This discovery is just a first step, but it suggests that even simple body measurements can tell us something about where people come from.
The scientists plan to study more people and other body parts to get a better understanding of how people differ across Ghana.
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