# Prenatal environmental determinants of health in young adulthood: a lifecourse approach

> **NIH NIH R01** · HARVARD PILGRIM HEALTH CARE, INC. · 2022 · $1,371,511

## Abstract

Summary/Abstract
Young adulthood is the life stage when we should achieve peak health. Physically, young adults will have
completed their growth, reached maximal lean body mass, and have optimal fertility. Many young adults will
have completed school and live independently. While few young adults have overt chronic disease, many
already have substantial risk factors such as hypertension, hyperglycemia, and obesity. Moreover, suboptimal
lifestyle behaviors such as poor diet, insufficient sleep, and substance use, and symptoms of depression and
anxiety prevent many young adults from reaching their full potential.
Existing evidence suggests that the prenatal environment influences health and disease risks across the
lifecourse. However, most human evidence is based on either short-term follow-up into childhood, when health
is more plastic; or on retrospective data from adult cohorts in which exposures are limited or subject to
substantial recall bias, and selection bias is likely considerable yet unquantifiable.
The proposed project will address this topic leveraging the rich data already collected in the Project Viva pre-
birth cohort. The project will include already-collected measures of prenatal maternal behaviors (diet, smoking,
physical activity) and biology (inflammation, blood pressure, glycemia, weight gain, depressive/anxiety
symptoms), as well as elements of the chemical (exposures to metals, PFAS, air pollution) and social
environments (material hardship, neighborhood deprivation). Specific Aims will focus on following key domains
of health to be assessed in 1000 young adults followed since prenatal life:
Aim 1: Cardiometabolic Health, based on weight, waist circumference, blood pressure, and biomarkers (lipids,
glycemia, inflammation).
Aim 2: Reproductive Health, based on fertility markers including hormone levels, menstrual cycle
characteristics (for women), and sperm quality/quantity (for men).
Aim 3: Experiential Health and Wellbeing, based on perceived overall health and quality of life, measures of
positive psychology (e.g. optimism), and low levels of depressive/anxiety symptoms
Secondary Aim 4: Health behaviors, including diet and eating behaviors, physical and sedentary activities,
tobacco and other substance use, and sleep.
The primary hypothesis is that a more beneficial prenatal environment will be associated with better
cardiometabolic, reproductive, and experiential health in young adulthood. Project Viva is uniquely positioned
to address these important scientific questions. Ongoing support of this unique resource will provide an
unparalleled opportunity to rigorously evaluate the extent to which developmental exposures influence health
into adulthood.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10444078
- **Project number:** 2R01HD034568-20
- **Recipient organization:** HARVARD PILGRIM HEALTH CARE, INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** Marie-France Hivert
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $1,371,511
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 1998-07-01 → 2027-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10444078

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10444078, Prenatal environmental determinants of health in young adulthood: a lifecourse approach (2R01HD034568-20). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10444078. Licensed CC0.

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