Birth weight and cardiometabolic diseases in adulthood

Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital

Lay summary

The rising prevalence of cardiometabolic diseases has been recognized as a public health problem globally. Observational studies have suggested that low birth weight may increases the risk for CVD and metabolic disease in adulthood. However, we do not have enough evidence to verify whether there have causal associations between low and high birth weight and multiple cardiovascular conditions in large-scale cohorts. Therefore, we intend to study causal effects of low and high birth weight on multiple cardiovascular conditions and metabolic diseases.

This project will last for 36 months.

Findings from this research may establish causal effect of low and high birth weight on cardiovascular conditions and metabolic diseases. These findings will pave a way for future preventive strategies for cardiovascular conditions and metabolic diseases by modifying factors closely associated with birth weight, such as prenatal nutrition status.