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Early life diarrhoea and later blood pressure in a developing country: the 1982 Pelotas (Brazil) birth cohort study

G D Batty1, B L Horta, G Davey Smith

  • 1MRC Social & Public Health Sciences Unit, University of Glasgow, 4 Lilybank Gardens, Glasgow G12 8RZ, UK. david-b@sphsu.mrc.ac.uk

Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
|September 20, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Episodes of childhood diarrhea, a proxy for dehydration, were not associated with later blood pressure. This comprehensive study found no evidence linking early life dehydration to hypertension risk in adolescence or adulthood.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Cardiovascular Health
  • Epidemiology

Background:

  • Recent hypotheses suggest early childhood dehydration may program increased blood pressure through salt retention.
  • Diarrheal episodes in infancy are considered a proxy for acute dehydration.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between early childhood diarrhea and blood pressure measured in adolescence and early adulthood.
  • To determine if early life dehydration influences long-term hypertension risk.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized data from the 1982 Pelotas birth cohort study in Brazil.
  • Recorded hospital admissions for diarrhea in the first 12 and 20 months of life.
  • Measured blood pressure in participants during adolescence and early adulthood.

Main Results:

  • No evidence of an association was found between diarrhea in the first 12 months and later blood pressure.
  • These null findings persisted after adjusting for various covariates.
  • Diarrhea admissions within the first 20 months, sanitation access, and piped water use also showed no association with later blood pressure.

Conclusions:

  • Early life proxies for dehydration and diarrhea were unrelated to subsequent blood pressure measurements.
  • This study provides comprehensive evidence against a link between early childhood dehydration and later hypertension.
Abstract

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