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C Osmond

Publications and source records attributed to C Osmond.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

Early growth and coronary heart disease in later life: longitudinal study.

OBJECTIVE: To determine how growth during infancy and childhood modifies the increased risk of coronary heart disease associated with small body size at birth. DESIGN: Longitudinal study. SETTING: Helsinki, Finland. SUBJECTS: 4630 men who were born in the Helsinki University Hospital during 1934-44 and who attended child welfare clinics in the city. Each man had on average 18.0 (SD 9.5) measurements of height and weight between birth and age 12 years. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Hospital admission or death from coronary heart disease. RESULTS: Low birth weight and low ponderal index (birth weight/length(3)) were associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease. Low height, weight, and body mass index (weight/height(2)) at age 1 year also increased the risk. Hazard ratios fell progressively from 1.83 (95% confidence interval 1.28 to 2.60) in men whose body mass index at age 1 year was below 16 kg/m(2) to 1.00 in those whose body mass index was >19 (P for trend=0.0004). After age 1 year, rapid gain in weight and body mass index increased the risk of coronary heart disease. This effect was confined, however, to men with a ponderal index <26 at birth. In these men the hazard ratio associated with a one unit increase in standard deviation score for body mass index between ages 1 and 12 years was 1.27 (1.10 to 1.47; P=0.001). CONCLUSION: Irrespective of size at birth, low weight gain during infancy is associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease. After age 1 year, rapid weight gain is associated with further increase in risk, but only among boys who were thin at birth. In these boys the adverse effects of rapid weight gain on later coronary heart disease are already apparent at age 3 years. Improvements in fetal, infant, and child growth could lead to substantial reductions in the incidence of coronary heart disease.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

Association of schizophrenia with low maternal body mass index, small size at birth, and thinness during childhood.

BACKGROUND: Nutritional factors in early life may contribute to the neurodevelopmental deficit in schizophrenia. This study explores the influence of maternal body size, size at birth, and childhood growth on future risk for schizophrenia. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This population-based cohort study comprised births at Helsinki University Central Hospital in Helsinki, Finland, from 1924 to 1933. Prospective data from birth and school health records of 7086 individuals were collected and linked to the Finnish Hospital Discharge Register. RESULTS: Schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder had been diagnosed in 114 individuals. A lower late-pregnancy maternal body mass index (BMI) increased the risk (odds ratio [OR], 1.09 per kilogram/meter(2); 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.02-1.17) for schizophrenia among the offspring. The risk of schizophrenia increased with low birth weight (OR, 1.48 per kilogram; 95% CI, 1.03-2.13), shortness at birth (OR, 1.12 per centimeter; 95% CI, 1.03-1.22), and low placental weight (OR, 1.22 per 100 g; 95% CI, 1.04-1.43). Schizophrenia cases were thinner than comparison subjects from 7 to 15 years of age. In a joint model comprising late-pregnancy maternal BMI, body size at birth, and childhood BMI, childhood BMI was an independent predictor of schizophrenia, whereas other factors exhibited attenuated effects. CONCLUSION: Indicators of intrauterine and childhood undernutrition are associated with an increased lifetime risk of schizophrenia.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Testing the fetal origins hypothesis in twins: the Birmingham twin study.

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: To test whether the link between birthsize and raised blood pressure or glucose tolerance is due to genetic or intrauterine factors, we studied whether differences in birthweight between pairs of monozygous and dizygous twins are associated with adult differences in blood pressure and glucose tolerance. METHODS: A sample of 58 monozygous and 140 dizygous twins were identified from a register of births in Birmingham, United Kingdom, between 1950 and 1954. The twins had their blood pressure measured and underwent an oral glucose tolerance test. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant associations between birthweight, length or ponderal index, and either blood pressure or glucose tolerance in the twins. Although there were substantial within-pair differences in birthweight between monozygous and dizygous twin pairs, these differences did not correlate with the adult outcomes. Monozygous correlations, however, for both blood pressure and glucose tolerance were statistically significantly higher than dizygous correlations and a quantitative genetic model suggested statistically significant heritability for these traits. In contrast correlations of birthsize were similar in monozygous and dizygous pairs suggesting only a small genetic component in determining fetal size. CONCLUSION/INTERPRETATION: Our results show that birthsize in twins does not predict adult blood pressure or glucose tolerance. We also suggest that shared genetic determinants for fetal growth and adult outcomes are not likely to be prevalent or powerful.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Maternal height, childhood growth and risk of hip fracture in later life: a longitudinal study.

Although measures to enhance bone mineralization during childhood and adolescence are widely incorporated into preventive programmes against osteoporotic fracture, there are no published data directly linking growth rates in childhood with the risk of later hip fracture. We addressed this issue in a unique Finnish cohort in whom birth and childhood growth data were linked to later hospital discharge records. This permitted follow-up of 3639 men and 3447 women who were born in Helsinki University Central Hospital between 1924 and 1933, who went to school in Helsinki and still lived in Finland in 1971. Body size at birth was recorded and an average of 10 measurements were obtained of height and weight throughout childhood. We identified 112 subjects (55 men and 57 women) who sustained a hip fracture during 165 404 person-years of follow-up. After adjustment for age and sex in a proportional hazards model, we identified two major determinants of hip fracture risk: tall maternal height (p < 0.001) and a low rate of childhood growth (height, p = 0.006; weight, p = 0.01). The hazard ratio for hip fracture was 2.1 (95% CI 1.2-3.5) among men and women born to mothers taller than 1.61 m, when compared with those whose mothers were shorter than 1.54 m. The ratio was 1.9 (95% CI 1.1-3.2) among those whose rate of childhood height gain was below the lowest quartile for the cohort, compared with those whose growth rate was above the highest quartile. The effects of maternal height and childhood growth rate were statistically independent of each other, and remained after adjusting for socioeconomic status. The patterns of childhood growth that predicted future hip fracture differed between boys and girls. In boys, there was a constant deficit in height and weight between ages 7 and 15 years among those later sustaining fractures; in girls, there was a progressively increasing deficit in weight but a delayed height gain among those later sustaining fractures. This epidemiologic study provides the first direct evidence that a low rate of childhood growth is a risk factor for later hip fracture. Whether reduced growth rate is a consequence of childhood lifestyle, genetic background or intrauterine hormonal programming, the data support measures to optimize childhood growth as part of preventive strategies against osteoporotic fracture in future generations.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Second-trimester placental volume and infant size at birth.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the ability of second-trimester placental volume measured sonographically to predict birth size. METHODS: A total of 712 women were recruited from the antenatal clinic of the University Hospital of the West Indies; 561 fulfilled the study criteria and progressed to delivery. Placental volume and fetal anthropometry (biparietal diameter, head and abdominal circumferences, and femoral length) were measured sonographically at 14, 17, and 20 weeks. The main outcome measures were infant birth and placental weights, length, head, chest, and abdominal circumferences at birth. RESULTS: Placental volume in the second trimester was positively associated with all birth measurements. Of the fetal measurements at 14 and at 17 weeks, head circumference was the strongest predictor of birth weight (B [slope of the regression line] =.095, P =.014 at 14 weeks; B =.118, P =.012 at 17 weeks), but at 20 weeks, abdominal circumference was the strongest. However, at each age, placental volume was the strongest determinant of birth weight, and improved the prediction based only on fetal measurements. The odds ratio for low birth weight (under 2500 g) increased by 1.68 (95% confidence interval 1.05, 2.69, P = 0.03) for every standard deviation decrease in placental volume at 14 weeks' gestation. CONCLUSION: The present study suggests that low birth weight was often preceded by small placental volume in the second trimester. Placental volume may be a more reliable predictor of size at birth than fetal measurements, and may be useful in early identification of the fetus at risk in the perinatal period.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Size at birth, childhood growth and obesity in adult life.

BACKGROUND: Several studies have shown tracking of obesity from childhood to adult life. People who develop obesity in adult life may therefore have had a particular path of growth from birth through childhood. OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationship of obesity to size at birth and childhood growth. DESIGN: Birth cohort study. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 5210 individuals alive and living in Finland in 1997, who were born at the Helsinki University Central Hospital between 1924 and 1933 and who went to school in Helsinki were sent a questionnaire in order to get information about adult weight and height. Detailed birth and school health records were available for all subjects. In all, 3847 responded and 3659 (1552 men and 2107 women) with adequate data are included in the present study. MEASUREMENTS: Incidence of obesity based upon lifetime maximum body mass index (BMI) ascertained from a postal questionnaire and defined as a BMI>30 kg/m(2). The main explanatory measurements were size at birth and childhood growth in height, weight and BMI. RESULTS: The cumulative incidence of obesity was 34.2% in men and 33.9% in women. The incidence rose with increasing birth weight and ponderal index (birthweight/length(3); P=0.01 and P=0.04, respectively). These associations were statistically significant only among males. By the age of 7 y the mean weights, heights and BMI of people who later became obese exceeded the average and remained above average at all ages from 7 to 15 y. In both men and women there was a 3-fold increase in obesity associated with a BMI>16 kg/m(2) at age 7 compared with a BMI<14.5 kg/m(2) (P<0.0001). Boys and girls whose mothers had a high BMI in pregnancy had more rapid childhood growth and an increased risk of becoming obese. This effect was stronger among boys (P=0.008). CONCLUSIONS: Obesity is initiated early in life. These results emphasise the importance of early preventive measures for its treatment.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

Adult survival after prenatal exposure to the Dutch famine 1944--45.

Early life events may affect adult survival. We studied the effect of prenatal exposure to the Dutch famine 1944--45 on survival among 2254 people born in Amsterdam. Mortality up to age 50 was highest among those born before the famine (15.2%) and among those exposed to famine in late gestation (14.6%). It was lower among those exposed in mid- (11.2%) or early gestation (11.5%), and was lowest among those conceived after the famine (7.2%). These differences were caused by effects on mortality in the first year after birth and were mainly related to nutrition and infections. There was no effect of exposure to famine on mortality after the age of 18. The hazard ratio was 1.4 [0.8, 2.3] for those born before the famine, 1.1 [0.5, 2.3] for those exposed in late gestation, 0.8 [0.3, 1.8] for those exposed in mid-gestation and 1.1 [0.5, 2.5] in those exposed in early gestation compared with those conceived after the famine. We could not demonstrate effects of prenatal exposure to famine on cause-specific mortality after the age of 18. Because prenatal exposure to famine is linked to cardiovascular risk factors and disease, increased cardiovascular mortality in the future may be expected.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Maternal nutrition during gestation and blood pressure in later life.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the link between maternal diet during pregnancy and blood pressure of the offspring. DESIGN: Follow-up study. SETTING: A university hospital in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. PARTICIPANTS: People born at term as singletons between November 1943 and February 1947. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Blood pressure at adult age. RESULTS: Adult blood pressure was not associated with protein, carbohydrate or fat intake during any period of gestation. We found, however, after adjustment for sex that the systolic blood pressure decreased by 0.6 mmHg (0.1-1.1) for every 1% increase in protein/carbohydrate ratio in the third trimester. This association was present both in people who had been exposed to the famine during gestation as well as in those who had not been exposed. The association between protein/carbohydrate ratio in the third trimester and adult blood pressure was furthermore independent of maternal weight gain and final weight, and birth weight [increase for every 1% increase in protein/carbohydrate ratio 0.6 mmHg (0.0-1.2)]. Adjustment for adult characteristics such as body mass index, smoking and socio-economic status did not affect the observed association appreciably [adjusted increase 0.5 mmHg (0.0-1.0)]. CONCLUSION: Adult blood pressure seems to be affected by small variations in the balance of macro-nutrients in the maternal diet during gestation rather than by relatively large variations in the absolute amounts.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Birth weight and the risk of depressive disorder in late life.

BACKGROUND: Low birth weight is a risk factor for coronary heart disease, diabetes, stroke and hypertension. Depression is highly associated with these conditions. AIMS: To examine the association between birth weight and depression in late life. METHOD: A total of 882 singleton term births in the 1920s had contemporary records of birth weight and weight at 1 year. At 68 years all completed the Geriatric Depression Scale and 867 completed the Geriatric Mental State Examination. A logistic regression was used to analyse the associations between depression, birth weight and weight at 1 year while adjusting for known risk factors. RESULTS: Current social class, social class at birth, recent bereavement, social isolation and physical illness increased the risk of depression. After adjusting for these and weight at 1 year, the odds ratios for depression among men, but not women, rose incrementally with decreasing birth weight (1.0, 12.8; for continuous variable, P<0.007). CONCLUSIONS: Foetal undernutrition predisposes men to depression in late adult life. If replicated, these results would suggest a neurodevelopmental aetiology of depression, possibly mediated by programming of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis.

Aged↗
PubMed2000

The fetal and childhood growth of persons who develop type 2 diabetes.

BACKGROUND: Type 2 diabetes is associated with low birthweight followed by obesity in adulthood. Persons who develop the disease may therefore have a particular pattern of growth from birth through childhood. OBJECTIVE: To examine the relation of type 2 diabetes to size at birth and childhood growth. DESIGN: Cohort study. SETTING: Helsinki, Finland. PARTICIPANTS: Men (n = 3,639) and women (n = 3,447) who were bom at the Helsinki University Central Hospital between 1924 and 1933, who went to school in Helsinki, and who still lived in Finland in 1971. Detailed birth and school health records were available for all 7,086 participants. We identified 471 men and women who developed type 2 diabetes by using the national Social Insurance Institution's register of all persons in Finland who are receiving long-term therapy with medication. MEASUREMENTS: Incidence of diabetes ascertained from a national register. The main explanatory measurements were size at birth and childhood growth in terms of height, weight, and body mass index. RESULTS: The cumulative incidence of type 2 diabetes was 7.9% (n = 286) in men and 5.4% (n = 185) in women. The incidence increased with decreasing birthweight, birth length, ponderal index (birthweight/length(3)), and placental weight The odds ratio for type 2 diabetes was 1.38 (95% CI, 1.15 to 1.66; P < 0.001) for each 1-kg decrease in birthweight. The mean weights and heights of the children at 7 years of age who later developed type 2 diabetes were about average. Thereafter, their growth in weight and height was accelerated until 15 years of age. The odds ratio for development of type 2 diabetes was 1.39 (CI, 1.21 to 1.61; P < 0.001) for each standard deviation increase in weight between 7 and 15 years of age. The odds ratio became 1.83 (CI, 1.37 to 2.45; P< 0.001) in an analysis restricted to persons whose birthweights were below 3,000 g. Children of both sexes whose mothers had a high body mass index in pregnancy had more rapid growth during childhood and an increased incidence of type 2 diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that type 2 diabetes is programmed in utero in association with low rates of fetal growth. The increased risk for type 2 diabetes associated with small size at birth is further increased by high growth rates after 7 years of age.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Low birth weights contribute to high rates of early-onset chronic renal failure in the Southeastern United States.

BACKGROUND: The southeastern United States is a region in which rates of cardiovascular and renal diseases are excessive. Within the Southeast, South Carolina has unusually high rates of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) in young people, with more than 70% of cases attributed to hypertension and diabetes. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the increased vulnerability to early-onset ESRD might originate through impaired renal development in utero as measured by low birth weight. METHODS: Patients who were diagnosed with renal failure and undergoing dialysis from 1991 through 1996 were identified from the ESRD registry maintained by the Southeastern Kidney Council, Raleigh, NC. Birth weights reported on birth certificates were selected for the ESRD cases and non-ESRD controls who were born in South Carolina in 1950 and later. Birth weights were compared for 1230 cases and 2460 controls who were matched for age, sex, and race. RESULTS: Low birth weight was associated with ESRD among men and women as well as blacks and whites. Among people whose birth weight was less than 2.5 kg, the odds ratio for ESRD was 1.4 (95% confidence interval, 1.1-1.8) compared with people who weighed 3 to 3.5 kg. This association was present for renal failure resulting from diabetes, hypertension, and other causes. CONCLUSIONS: Low birth weights, which reflect adverse effects on development in utero, contribute to the early onset of ESRD in South Carolina. Since low birth weight increases the risk of ESRD from multiple causes, the data suggest that an adverse environment in utero impairs kidney development and makes it more vulnerable to damage from a range of pathological processes.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Effects of infant birthweight and maternal body mass index in pregnancy on components of the insulin resistance syndrome in China.

BACKGROUND: Reduced birthweight is associated with increased risk for the insulin resistance syndrome. Part of this risk is hypothesized to originate from undernutrition in utero. The prevalence of the insulin resistance syndrome increases in countries that undergo the transition from chronic malnutrition to adequate nutrition, when postnatal nutrition improves more rapidly than prenatal nutrition. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the components of the insulin resistance syndrome are associated with reduced fetal growth and maternal undernutrition. DESIGN: A nonconcurrent, prospective study of men and women whose mothers' heights and weights were recorded during pregnancy. SETTING: Beijing, China. PARTICIPANTS: 627 men and women (mean age, 45 years) whose mothers' obstetric records were preserved. MEASUREMENTS: Adult offspring's blood pressure, plasma glucose levels, insulin levels, and lipid concentrations during an oral glucose tolerance test. The main explanatory measurements were mothers' body mass index during pregnancy and offspring's birthweight and adult size. RESULTS: After adjustment for sex and current body mass index, low birthweight was associated with elevated plasma glucose levels, insulin levels, triglyceride concentrations, and blood pressure. For every 1-kg increase in birthweight, systolic blood pressure decreased by 2.9 mm Hg (95% CI, 0.3 to 5.4 mm Hg) and the 2-hour plasma glucose level decreased by 5.1% (CI, 0.7% to 9.3%). Low maternal body mass index in early and late pregnancy was associated with elevated levels of plasma glucose, insulin, and triglycerides in adult offspring but was not associated with elevated blood pressure. CONCLUSIONS: Risk for the insulin resistance syndrome may be partially established through low maternal body mass before pregnancy and consequent fetal undernutrition. This risk is independent of that associated with adult obesity. In developing countries such as China, improved nutrition in girls and young women may offer long-term benefits to offspring.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Trends in epilepsy mortality in England and Wales and the United States, 1950-1994.

The aim of this study was to analyze time trends in epilepsy mortality in England and Wales and the United States between 1950 and 1994. The authors calculated age- and sex-specific epilepsy mortality rates for the nine quinquennia from 1950-1954 to 1990-1994. Mortality rates were modeled as a function of age, period of death, and cohort of birth by using Poisson regression techniques. From 1950 to 1994, there were more than 110,000 deaths from epilepsy in the two countries. The secular trends in mortality were similar for both sexes and in both countries. Among people younger than age 20 years, epilepsy mortality declined steeply after 1950. For young and middle-aged adults, the rate of decline was lower. In the geriatric population, mortality declined between 1950 and 1974 but then increased. The Poisson model showed pronounced birth cohort effects. In the United States, epilepsy mortality fell with each successive birth cohort after 1905. In England and Wales, there was a similar decline in birth cohort mortality after 1905 for women but not until after 1950 for men. The pronounced birth cohort effect supports explanations that focus on antenatal and developmental factors as the cause for the decline in epilepsy mortality in all but the oldest age groups between 1950 and 1994.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

Plasma fibrinogen and factor VII concentrations in adults after prenatal exposure to famine.

To assess the effect of maternal malnutrition during different stages of gestation on plasma concentrations of fibrinogen and factor VII, we investigated 725 people, aged 50 years, born around the time of the Dutch famine 1944-5. After adjustment for sex, plasma fibrinogen concentrations differed by -0.01 g/l (95% confidence interval, -0.14-0.11) in those exposed in late gestation, by -0.03 g/l (-0.16-0.11) in those exposed in mid gestation, and by 0.13 g/l (-0.03-0.30) in those exposed in early gestation, compared with non-exposed people (those born before and those conceived after the famine pooled together). Plasma factor VII concentrations differed by 0.4% (-5.4% to 6.6%) in those exposed to famine in late gestation, by 1.5% (-4.6% to 8.1%) in those exposed in mid gestation. and by -11.8% (-18.4 to -4.8%) in those exposed in early gestation, compared with nonexposed people. Size at birth was not associated with plasma concentrations of fibrinogen or factor VII. Our finding that factor VII concentrations were significantly lower in people whose mothers had been exposed to famine in early pregnancy suggests that liver function may be affected by undernutrition in early gestation.

Birth Weight↗
PubMed2000

Plasma lipid profiles in adults after prenatal exposure to the Dutch famine.

BACKGROUND: Small body size at birth has been reported to be associated with an atherogenic lipid profile in humans, and animal experiments have shown that undernutrition during pregnancy permanently alters cholesterol metabolism in the offspring. There is no direct evidence in humans that maternal malnutrition during pregnancy affects the lipid profiles of the offspring. OBJECTIVES: We assessed the effects of maternal malnutrition during specific periods of gestation on plasma lipid profiles in persons aged approximately 50 y. DESIGN: This was a follow-up study of men and women born at term as singletons in a university hospital in Amsterdam between 1 November 1943 and 28 February 1947 around the time of a severe famine. RESULTS: Persons exposed to famine in early gestation had a more atherogenic lipid profile than did those who were not exposed to famine in utero. Their LDL-HDL cholesterol ratios were significantly higher (by 13.9%; 95% CI: 2.6-26.4%). Additionally, their plasma HDL-cholesterol and apolipoprotein A concentrations tended to be lower, and their plasma total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and apolipoprotein B concentrations tended to be higher, although these differences were not statistically significant. The effect of famine was independent of size at birth and adult obesity. CONCLUSIONS: An atherogenic lipid profile might be linked to a transition from poor maternal nutrition in early gestation to adequate nutrition later on. This suggests that maternal malnutrition during early gestation may program lipid metabolism without affecting size at birth.

Apolipoproteins A↗
PubMed2000

Comparative effects of laser and radiofrequency energy on joint capsule.

The study compared the effects of laser and monopolar radiofrequency energy on thermal and architectural properties of joint capsular tissue in an in vitro ovine model. Sheep glenohumeral joint capsular specimens were treated with laser (5, 10, 15 W) or radiofrequency energy (55 degrees, 65 degrees, 75 degrees C) (n = six per group). Energy application caused significant tissue shrinkage and decreased surface area in all laser and radiofrequency treatment groups. Tissue thickness significantly increased in all treatment groups except for radiofrequency 55 degrees C. Tissue shrinkage, surface area, and thickness each correlated significantly with the delivered laser energy per tissue area or mean radiofrequency probe temperature. There were no significant differences among laser 10 W, laser 15 W, and radiofrequency 75 degrees C treatment groups for these three architectural parameters. Tissue temperature was elevated significantly in the laser 10 W, laser 15 W, radiofrequency 65 degrees C, and radiofrequency 75 degrees C groups when compared with the control. Tissue temperature changes between the laser 10 W and radiofrequency 75 degrees C groups were similar; however, laser treatment produced a steeper temperature increase accompanying its peak temperature. Despite different mechanisms, laser and radiofrequency energy can achieve similar and predictable tissue modification, which is temperature dependent. Additional in vivo studies must be performed to evaluate the applicability of these techniques to clinical use.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Infant feeding and adult glucose tolerance, lipid profile, blood pressure, and obesity.

BACKGROUND: It is generally accepted that breast feeding has a beneficial effect on the health of infants and young children. Recently, a few studies have shown that the method of infant feeding is also associated with cardiovascular disease and its risk factors in adult life. AIMS: To examine the association between the method of infant feeding in the first weeks after birth and glucose tolerance, plasma lipid profile, blood pressure, and body mass in adults aged 48-53 years. METHODS: Subjects born at term between 1 November 1943 and 28 February 1947 in the Wilhelmina Gasthuis in Amsterdam around the time of a severe period of famine (late November 1944 to early May 1945). For 625 subjects, information was available about infant feeding at the time of discharge from hospital (on average 10.4 days after birth), and at least one blood sample after an overnight fast. RESULTS: Subjects who were bottle fed had a higher mean 120 minute plasma glucose concentration after a standard oral glucose tolerance test than those who were exclusively breast fed. They also had a higher plasma low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol concentration, a lower high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol concentration, and a higher LDL/HDL ratio. Systolic blood pressure and body mass index were not affected by the method of infant feeding. CONCLUSIONS: Exclusive breast feeding seems to have a protective effect against some risk factors for cardiovascular disease in later life.

Adolescent↗