Temperature at birth linked to health later in lifeMarch 09, 2004Cold outdoor temperature at birth is associated with increased coronary heart disease and insulin resistance, high cholesterol levels, and poor lung function in later life, suggests a study in Heart. This link was strongest among those from the lowest social and economic classes. Researchers examined the effects of average outdoor temperature around the time of birth in a sample of 4,286 women aged 60-79 years from 23 British towns. Dates of birth for each participant were matched to official climate records. Coronary heart disease was greatest among women born during the coldest months. Cold outdoor temperature at birth was also associated with increased insulin resistance, increased cholesterol concentrations, and poorer lung function. The association between cold temperature at birth and coronary heart disease was most pronounced among those whose fathers were either unemployed or in manual social classes when the participants were children, and was non-existent in those from non-manual social classes in childhood. "Our findings have some consistency with the theory that exposure to cold temperatures around the time of birth leads to increased fat storage and insulin resistance, and thence to coronary heart disease in later life," say the authors. These findings also help to strengthen our understanding of how social and economic inequalities can interact with a "natural" inequality in the physical environment to generate and worsen health inequalities, they conclude. | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Related Heart Disease News Articles Chemists move closer toward developing safer, fully-synthetic form of heparin Chemists are reporting a major advance toward developing a safer, fully-synthetic version of heparin, the widely used blood thinner now produced from pig intestines. The U. S. Food and Drug Administration last spring linked contaminated batches of the animal-based product, imported from China, to more than 80 deaths and hundreds of allergic reactions among patients exposed to the drug for kidney dialysis and other conditions. Air pollution damages more than lungs: Heart and blood vessels suffer too As athletes from around the world compete in the Beijing Olympics, many are on alert for respiratory problems caused by air pollution. They should also be concerned about its toxic effects on the heart and cardiovascular system, mounting research shows. Aspirin, acid blocker a-day keeps GI bleeding For patients with clogged heart arteries who take long-term, low-dose aspirin to prevent a cardiac event, adding a stomach acid-blocking drug to their daily routine has been shown to reduce their risk for upper gastrointestinal bleeding - an infrequent, but serious side-effect of regular aspirin use. Gladstone scientists identify single microRNA that controls blood vessel development Scientists from the Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease (GICD) and UCSF have identified a key regulatory factor that controls development of the human vascular system, the extensive network of arteries, veins, and capillaries that allow blood to reach all tissues and organs. Losing weight soon after type 2 diabetes diagnosis doubles positive outcomes People who lose weight soon after a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes have better control of their blood pressure and blood sugar, and are more likely to maintain that control even if they regain their weight, according to a Kaiser Permanente study published online in Diabetes Care, the American Diabetes Association journal. Adults who eat eggs for breakfast lose 65 percent more weight A study published online today in the International Journal of Obesity shows that eating two eggs for breakfast, as part of a reduced-calorie diet, helps overweight adults lose more weight and feel more energetic than those who eat a bagel breakfast of equal calories. Lowering cholesterol early in life could save lives With heart disease maintaining top billing as the leading cause of death in the United States, a team of University of California, San Diego School of Medicine physician-researchers is proposing that aggressive intervention to lower cholesterol levels as early as childhood is the best approach available today to reducing the incidence of coronary heart disease. Long-term HIV treatment may reduce risk for atherosclerosis Antiretroviral drugs for HIV do not increase the risk for coronary atherosclerosis, a central risk factor for heart disease, according to a study led by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health to be published in the Aug. 8 issue of the journal AIDS and available online today. Improved estrogen reception may sharpen fuzzy memory Estrogen treatments may sharpen mental performance in women with certain medical conditions, but University of Florida researchers suggest that recharging a naturally occurring estrogen receptor in the brain may also clear cognitive cobwebs. Fat around the heart may increase risk of heart attacks When it comes to risk for a heart attack, having excess fat around the heart may be worse than having a high body mass index or a thick waist, according to researchers from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and colleagues reporting in the August issue of the journal Obesity. More Heart Disease News Articles |
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