Table 3.

Fetal, infant, and childhood influences on carotid intima-media thickness in men and women at age 49-51 years. Values are standardised regression coefficients (95% confidence intervals)

Independent variable	Unadjusted in men (n=154)		Unadjusted in women (n=193)
Fetal life
Self reported family history of angina, heart condition, or stroke	−0.09 (−0.25 to 0.07)		−0.04 (−0.19 to 0.10)
Social class at birth†	−0.05 (−0.21 to 0.11)		−0.16 (−0.30 to −0.02)*
Poor housing conditions at birth	0.10 (−0.06 to 0.26)		0.08 (−0.07 to 0.22)
Birth weight‡	−0.17 (−0.33 to −0.02)*		−0.04 (−0.18 to 0.10)
Infancy and childhood
Social class at age 5 years	0.02 (−0.14 to 0.18)		−0.09 (−0.24 to 0.05)
Poor housing conditions at age 5 years	−0.06 (−0.22 to 0.10)		0.02 (−0.12 to 0.17)
Adverse life events in childhood	0.06 (−0.10 to 0.22)		0.09 (−0.06 to 0.23)
Childhood infections	−0.01 (−0.17 to 0.15)		−0.08 (−0.22 to 0.07)
Catch up growth in childhood§	0.12 (−0.04 to 0.28)		0.04 (−0.11 to 0.18)

Regression coefficients expressed as standard deviation unit change in dependent variable produced by one standard deviation change in independent variable. Adjusted coefficients take account of significant and borderline significant covariates only (P<0.10 to enter, P⩾0.10 to remove. Adjustment for early life and adult lifestyle takes account of other variables in same group, interaction between family history, fetal and childhood components (pathways A and B on figure) and of indirect effects mediated through adult socioeconomic position and lifestyle (pathway C). Adjustment for lifecourse also takes account of indirect effects mediated through adult biological risk markers (pathway D). 

^*P<0.05. 

^†In women: −0.14 (−0.28 to −0.01)^* when adjusted for early life and adult lifestyle and −0.15 (−0.29 to −0.02)^* when adjusted for lifecourse. 

^‡In men: −0.16 (−0.31 to 0.00) when adjusted for early life and adult lifestyle. 

^§Growth from birth to adulthood adjusted for achieved adult height and birth weight.