Does childhood nutrition influence adult cardiovascular disease risk?—Insights from the Young Finns Study

Figures & data

Figure 1. Star plots for the dietary patterns identified in subjects in 1980 (A), 1986 (B), and 2001 (C). Each arm of the star in the graphic presentation illustrates the correlation between the patterns and the different food groups, with a negative correlation (r = −1) at the midpoint and a positive correlation (r = +1) at the outer edge of the constellation (1 = traditional pattern 2 = health conscious pattern). A correlation of zero is indicated by a circle. The dietary patterns significantly tracked from childhood to adulthood. From reference (27) with permission.

Table I. Food groups used in the factor analysis for dietary patterns. From reference (27) with permission.

Food group	Foods included in the group
Rye	Rye bread, rye porridge
Wheat	Wheat bread, pasta
Other cereals	Cereals other than rye and wheat, breakfast cereals, biscuits, starch, rice
Potatoes	Potatoes, potato products
Root vegetables	Root vegetables
Legumes and nuts	Peas, beans, other legumes, nuts, seeds, soy products
Other vegetables	Leaf vegetables, onions, cabbages, tomatoes, cucumber, canned vegetables, mushrooms
Fruit and berries	Fresh fruits, canned fruits, berries, fruit and berry juices
Milk	Milk
Cheese	Cheese
Other dairy products	Cream, sour milk products, ice-cream
Butter	Butter, butter-oil spreads, lard
Margarines and oil	Soft margarine, low-fat spreads, oil
Pork	Pork
Other meat	Beef, game, poultry, lamb, meat products
Sausages	Sausages, frankfurters
Offal	Liver, kidney, other offal
Fish and shellfish	Fish, shellfish, fish products
Eggs	Eggs
Sugars and confectionery	Sugar, syrup, sweets, chocolate
Coffee	Coffee
Tea	Tea
Alcoholic beverages	Alcoholic beverages

Table II. Summary of the findings in the Young Finns Study (focusing on childhood risk and preventive factors versus adulthood outcomes).

Items investigated	Outcome variable	Findings
Childhood traditional risk factors for arterial health (41)	Intima media thickness (IMT) in young adults	Childhood risk factors found: LDL cholesterol; male gender; systolic blood pressure; smoking; body mass index
Childhood factors linked to arterial health (40)	Progression of IMT (6-year change) in young adults	Childhood preventive factors found: HDL cholesterol; physical activity; fruit consumption (independent). Childhood risk factors found: body mass index; systolic blood pressure
Childhood/longitudinal traditional dietary pattern (47)	Adulthood cardiovascular risk factors	Adulthood/longitudinal factors found: total cholesterol; LDL cholesterol; apolipoprotein B; C-reactive protein
Childhood dietary patterns (traditional versus health-conscious) (55)	IMT in young adults	Increased IMT related to traditional pattern
Childhood use of fruits and vegetables (18)	Arterial pulse wave velocity in adults	Decrease in arterial stiffness—the effect of fruits was independent
Increase in sweet consumption between adolescence and adulthood (sweets and sugar-sweetened soft drinks) (52)	Obesity in adulthood	Women: increased obesity due to soft drinks. Men: no effect
Childhood sweet consumption (52)	Obesity in adulthood	No effect
Breast-feeding in infancy (56)	Endothelial function (EF) in adults	Improved EF compared with formula users in men
Increase in serum selenium levels during childhood and adolescence prior to and following national fortification program (58)	Serum lipid levels in adults	No effect

EF = endothelial function; HDL = high-density lipoprotein; IMT = intima media thickness; LDL = low-density lipoprotein.

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