Early origin of coronary heart disease (the "Barker hypothesis")

Abstract

Yet for some time now quietude has beset this field of research. The main risk factors—raised body weight, cholesterol concentration, and blood pressure; glucose intolerance; smoking; and lack of physical activity—are old discoveries, and much current research seems merely to be fine tuning these standbys. The precise role of variations in coagulation profiles in the pathogenesis of coronary heart disease remains hazy, and factors such as stress and social support seem no more and no less promising and ambiguous than they were decades ago.