Dietary studies of children and young adults (1973-1988): the Bogalusa Heart Study.

The link between diet, the maintenance of health, and the development of chronic disease has become increasingly evident in recent years. The advice from national health organizations has become more focused, identifying dietary excesses of energy, total fat, saturated fatty acids, and dietary cholesterol as adversely affecting the health of Americans. In addition, eating habits formed during childhood have a potential lifelong effect on serum lipid levels, and thus, indirectly, on adult coronary heart disease risk. Therefore, an understanding of the diet and nutritional habits of children and young adults is critical to the planning of intervention strategies toward the natural course of coronary heart disease. For more than 20 years, the Bogalusa Heart Study has been collecting dietary data on subjects from infancy through adulthood. The dietary studies have described dietary patterns and nutrient intakes, relationships, and tracking of serum lipid and lipoprotein levels in a biracial, well defined population. These data have provided the rationale for the development of healthy eating habits early in life and ultimately the reduction of morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular disease.