STUDY INFO

NHLBI Growth and Health Study (NGHS)

The NGHS was initiated in 1987 in three sites: Cincinnati, OH; Berkeley, CA; and Washington, DC. The Cincinnati NGHS enrolled 871 girls aged 9 or 10 (50% African-American), who completed annual visits through age 24, and at ages 26 and 28 (17 total visits). The goals of this study were to characterize longitudinal growth and cardiovascular risk factor development through and beyond puberty, into young adulthood. Key areas of focus for the study included racial disparities in growth and development, including psychosocial development. The study visits included detailed assessments of demographic/household composition, anthropometrics and body composition by dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), blood pressure, smoking/alcohol use, dietary intake (3-day diet records), physical activity/leisure activity, self-esteem/psychosocial assessments, MRI assessments of visceral fat (young adulthood) and echocardiograms (young adulthood). The study also includes assessment of puberty stage, menses onset and regularity, and prospective assessment of over 400 pregnancies occurring in the cohort. Blood samples were drawn at visits 1, 3, 5, 7, and 10-17, with biochemical measurements (lipids, insulin, glucose) and DNA, as well as an extensive biorepository. NGHS in Cincinnati is one of the seven cohorts included in the i3C Consortium.