Early-life and health behaviour influences on lung function in early-adulthood

What is it about?

Low lung function at the physiological plateau in early adulthood is associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in later life. Lung development influences maximally attained lung function in early adulthood. Early life events, environmental, and health behaviour characteristics as well as pubertal growth play crucial roles – with different levels of relevance - in this process. However, little is known about the relative importance of early-life characteristics on lung function in early-adulthood. This population based, birth cohort study with information on a large number of exposures, estimated the relative contribution of characteristics associated with lung function in early-adulthood, around its physiological maximum. Perinatal characteristics, such as birth weight, and childhood characteristics, such as lean mass and fat mass at age 9 years had the most influences on forced expiratory volume in one-second (FEV1) as well as forced vital capacity (FVC) in early adulthood. Perinatal characteristics: maternal perinatal body mass index; maternal smoking during pregnancy, and childhood characteristics: asthma at age 7 years; lean mass at age 9 years, contributed the most to the explained variance of the FEV1/FVC ratio at age 24 years.

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