Infant nutrition and blood pressure in early adulthood: the Barry Caerphilly Growth study

Abstract

Background: Evidence suggests that environmental factors acting early in life may affect blood pressure in adulthood.

Objective: The objective was to test the hypothesis that dried formula milk (derived from cow milk) intake in infancy is positively associated with blood pressure in early adulthood.

Design: We conducted a long-term follow-up (1997-1999) of the Barry Caerphilly Growth study cohort (1972-1974) into which mothers and their offspring had originally been randomly assigned to receive a milk supplement or usual care. Participants were the offspring, who were aged 23-27 y at follow-up. The main outcome measures were systolic and diastolic blood pressure.

Results: The social and demographic characteristics of the subjects who were (n = 679) and were not (n = 272) followed up were similar. For each increase in quartile of dried milk consumption (in oz) at 3 mo of age, there was a 1.28-mm Hg (95% CI: 0.46, 2.10 mm Hg) increase in systolic and a 0.63-mm Hg (95% CI: 0.04, 1.22 mm Hg) increase in diastolic blood pressure after adjustment for sex, intervention group, birth weight z scores, social class in childhood, age at follow-up, alcohol consumption, and pack-years of smoking. These coefficients were attenuated when adult body mass index and height were included in the models, but the association of dried milk consumption at 3 mo of age with systolic pressure remained significant (1.07 mm Hg; 95% CI: 0.27, 1.87 mm Hg).

Conclusions: Our findings are consistent with the hypothesis that high blood pressure in later life is influenced by early postnatal nutrition. Thus, interventions to optimize infant nutrition may have important long-term health benefits.