According to a new study by foot care brand, Compeed, British women wear the highest heels in Europe.

And is it any wonder with national heroine Victoria Beckham wearing a heel up to the moment she gave birth -- and probably during --  only to subsequently pay the price with a slipped disc?

With an average of 3.3-in, limey ladies tower over the European Union with the señoritas of Spain nipping at their pumps with an average heel height of 3.2-in. Denmark stands at 3-in and Germany at 2.7-in, while the eternally chic women of France are happy to slum it in a kitten heel or a flat with an average height of 2.4-in.

Psychologist Emma Kenny explained the findings to the Daily Mail, saying, "A tall woman is considered more assertive, confident, richer, capable, successful, independent and even more intelligent than those who are shorter...British women are ambitious and if putting on a pair of six inch heels increases their career prospects the savvy individual will do so."

As a rule, I don't acknowledge anything less than 5-in as an actual high heel -- which, according to the Fashion Footwear Association of New York is the average height of a high-heeled shoe nowadays anyway -- but it would be interesting to find out where American women stand in comparison to their European counterparts.

Do they prefer to teeter like the Brits or tread softly like the French? [Vogue UK]