Abstract
Fetuses with stunted growth in the uterus may be more likely to develop coronary heart disease as adults. Researchers followed up 3,447 women born between 1924 and 1933 whose body size at birth was recorded and who had an average of 10 measurements of height and weight during childhood. Coronary heart disease was linked to low birth weight and in particular, shorter than normal length at birth. In a group of men born in the same time period, coronary heart disease was associated with leanness rather than shortness.