What are the public health implications of the life course perspective?

Figures & data

Figure 1. A circular display of the life course and examples of key priorities at various stages – the list is not exhaustive [1,2,7,10].

Table 1. Assessment of impact on next generations, plasticity and availability of interventions with documented impact on growth, neuro-cognitive development and later development of NCDs at various stages of the life course as a guide to public health prioritizations.

Stage on life course	Impact on next generations	Plasticity	Available interventions with documented impact on growth	Available interventions with documented impact on neuro-cognitive development	Available interventions with documented impact on later development of NCDs
Fetal life	++	+++	+++	+++	-
Infancy	++	+++	+++	++	-
Early childhood	++	+++	+++	+	-
School age	++	++	++	-	-
Adolescence	+++	+	++	-	-
Fertile age (pre-conception and pregnancy)	+++	+	-	-	-
Old age	-	-	-	-	+

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