title: Developmental origins of physical fitness: the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) is a major factor influencing health and disease outcomes including all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease. Importantly CRF is also modifiable and could therefore have a major public health impact. Early life exposures play a major role in chronic disease development. Our aim was to explore the potential prenatal and childhood origins of CRF in later life.
  
  
  RESULTS
  This sub-study of the HBCS (Helsinki Birth Cohort Study) includes 606 men and women who underwent a thorough clinical examination and participated in the UKK 2-km walk test, which has been validated against a maximal exercise stress test as a measure of CRF in population studies. Data on body size at birth and growth during infancy and childhood were obtained from hospital, child welfare and school health records. Body size at birth was not associated with adult CRF. A 1 cm increase in height at 2 and 7 years was associated with 0.21 ml/kg/min (95% CI 0.02 to 0.40) and 0.16 ml/kg/min (95% CI 0.03 to 0.28) higher VO2max, respectively. Adjustment for adult lean body mass strengthened these findings. Weight at 2 and 7 years and height at 11 years became positively associated with CRF after adult lean body mass adjustment. However, a 1 kg/m(2) higher BMI at 11 years was associated with -0.57 ml/kg/min (95% CI -0.91 to -0.24) lower adult VO2max, and remained so after adjustment for adult lean body mass.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We did not observe any significant associations between body size at birth and CRF in later life. However, childhood growth was associated with CRF in adulthood. These findings suggest, importantly from a public point of view, that early growth may play a role in predicting adult CRF.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chronic Disease Prevention, National Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki, Finland. minna.salonen@thl.fi
authors.forename: Minna K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Salonen
authors.forename: Eero
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kajantie
authors.forename: Clive
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Osmond
authors.forename: Tom
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Forsén
authors.forename: Hilkka
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ylihärsilä
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Paile-Hyvärinen
authors.forename: D J P
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Barker
authors.forename: Johan G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Eriksson
mesh_terms: D001724:Birth Weight; D002320:Cardiovascular Physiological Phenomena; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005080:Exercise Test; D005260:Female; D005387:Finland; D048788:Growth and Development / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D036801:Parturition; D010809:Physical Fitness; D012143:Respiratory Physiological Phenomena; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D016138:Walking / Q000502:physiology