New Study Pinpoints Pivotal Period for Improving Cardiovascular Health in Children
A year-round focus on cardiovascular health
News
A core tenet of Izzuddin Aris’s research is identifying how early life risk factors at critical developmental periods during the lifecourse affect important health outcomes. In other words: at what points in life can we pinpoint the ideal ages for intervention and prevention of chronic diseases such as heart disease – the number one cause of death and illness worldwide?
The American Heart Association’s Life’s Essential 8 guidelines assess cardiovascular health based on four behavioral (diet, smoking, physical activity, sleep duration) and four health factors (body mass index, blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels). While these guidelines hold promise to enhance the assessment of heart health across the lifecourse, the early warning signs of heart disease (high blood pressure, unhealthy cholesterol levels, and excess body fat) can develop as early as childhood - and there’s a lot that we don’t know about the trajectories of heart health through childhood and adolescence, making it hard to identify and mitigate risk.
In his AHA-funded project Identifying how early life risk factors at critical developmental periods during the lifecourse affect important health outcomes, Dr. Aris aims to fill gaps in what we know about patterns of heart health across childhood and adolescence leveraging Project Viva data with the long-term goal of using findings to inform future policies and guidelines that are relevant for maintaining optimal heart health throughout the lifecourse.
Our study provides insight into the trajectory of cardiovascular health in early life, establishing a clear window of opportunity to improve the health of the nation’s children now and into the future.
Izzuddin Aris, PhD
To date, this work has resulted in six publications, most notably his study, “Trajectory of Cardiovascular Health Across Childhood and Adolescence”, published in JAMA Cardiology, which shows that across demographic subgroups within the study population, heart health begins to decline at approximately 10 years of age and appears driven by health behaviors rather than health factors.
In his research, Izzuddin Aris examines the developmental origins of health and disease and aims to identify how early life risk factors at critical developmental periods during the lifecourse affect important health outcomes.
This decline, he and his study team say, may reflect social and/or developmental changes that typically occur at this age—such as changes in school schedules that may interfere with meeting guidelines for healthy sleep duration and/or diet—and may affect health behaviors. Improving these health behaviors, especially between mid-childhood and early adolescence, could help optimize heart health.
To follow along with Dr. Aris’s work, visit his investigator biography page.
