Welcome

Lifeways is a long term project which allows us to follow people over a period of time. The study is different in that it is ‘cross-generation’ – some families have three generations taking part – and we have a particular interest in looking at the effect of food and nutrition on health. The study started in 2000 and the first families were recruited in 2001. At the beginning over a thousand mothers at ante-natal clinics in the Coombe University Hospital Dublin and in University College Hospital Galway agreed to take part. These pregnancies resulted in 1092 ‘index’ babies and their mothers, including 12 pairs of twins. Over nine hundred families also provided information on fathers and grandparents as well. We have been following the children’s health and development ever since, including when children were 3, 5 and now 9 years old. As well as the more formal information we collect, we like to hear how the children are getting on, including pictures, stories and news about their lives.

We are running this study to see how Irish children grow and develop. Many things affect the way children grow, including environment and lifestyle as well as healthcare experience and this study will help us to understand all of these factors better. Family doctors, with the consent of the study participants, are also helping us to collect information.

So far, the study has given us some good findings, described further on the next pages. For example, we have learned some interesting and important things about diet patterns in mothers and children.  Thanks to the participating families, we are able to compare the influence of father’s and mother’s side of the family on development from the earliest stage of pregnancy into childhood.  This is one of the few studies in the world that has such grandparent participation.  Internationally, healthcare workers are trying to understand why children in the world are gaining more weight than previous generations. In particular, there is great interest in how genetics can affect this – in other words, are people more inclined to be overweight or underweight if their parents and grandparents in turn were so and how does that relate to everyone’s usual diet?  In a changing Ireland we need to understand what can keep us healthy and well into the future. This Lifeways study could really help to add to the scientific knowledge.