Cold weather birth link to problems

Being born during cold weather is linked to an increased risk of heart disease, high cholesterol and lung problems.

A study of more than 4,000 women aged 60 to 79 across Britain found that those from the most deprived backgrounds were worst affected by outdoor temperature at birth.

The researchers suggested that bad quality housing and other social factors involved with being poor could be to blame for poorer health later in life.

Researchers from the University of Bristol and the University of Edinburgh studied 4,286 women from 23 British towns, matching their dates of birth to the recorded temperatures.

They found that coronary heart disease was greatest among women born during the coldest months.

The difference was greatest among those whose father was long-term unemployed, with those from a manual background also having an increased risk.

Links were also found between cold temperature at birth and resistance to insulin, increased cholesterol levels and poorer lung function.

The link between cold temperature and health problems appeared to be non-existent among those women from non-manual social classes during childhood.

The researchers said their findings had some consistency with the theory that exposure to the cold around the time of birth leads to increased fat storage and insulin resistence, leading to heart disease in later life.

Dr Richard Mitchell, from the University of Edinburgh Medical School, said societal changes were needed to address the problem, rather than action by individuals.

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