Cohort profile: The Southampton Women's Survey

How did the study come about? Inverse associations between birthweight and later risk of major chronic diseases, notably cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and osteoporosis, have been found in various studies. 1 Birthweight is determined by length of gestation and the combination of the early trajectory of fetal growth and the capacity of the fetal supply line to maintain this trajectory in late gestation. Studies in early pregnancy, assisted reproductive technology, and animal experi-ments indicate that both genetic and environmental factors are important in establishing the fetal growth trajectory and the fetal supply line; environmental factors include transgenerational influences and themother’s body composition, endocrine profile, diet, and physical activity around the time of conception.