Problems in adulthood such as tobacco use disorder and certain conditions affecting the digestive system, heart, bladder, joints, and brain are shown to be influenced by factors that occurred during childhood, according to research presented at ENDO 2026, the Endocrine Society's annual meeting in Chicago, Ill., on June 15.
The study analyzed data from 165,832 women using the UK Biobank database. This resource contains extensive information including medical diagnoses, self-reported timing of menarche (the first menstrual period), and genetic data. The researchers investigated how the age at which menarche occurs can be delayed by adverse health or environmental factors experienced during childhood.
Previous research by this group found a relationship between later age at menarche and higher risk of coronary artery disease in women. They concluded that later timing of menarche serves as an indicator of underlying influences from childhood that not only delay puberty but also increase the risk for coronary artery disease in adulthood.
In this new study, researchers explored whether these findings applied to other adult health conditions. They used timing of menarche as a proxy for childhood influences while examining its relationship with 1,295 medical diagnoses available in the UK Biobank. To isolate non-genetic influences on menarche timing, they accounted for known genetic effects and used phenome-wide association studies to assess all diagnoses simultaneously.
Their analysis revealed that 85 adult health diagnoses show evidence of being affected by childhood influences. These included tobacco use disorder as well as various disorders related to major organ systems.
"We need a shift in perspective. We need to move from thinking that these health conditions emerge in adulthood to recognizing that they represent a culmination of influences that start in childhood. It is now up to us to figure out what these childhood influences are, and more research and funding towards understanding them will allow us to target specific aspects of childhood health to improve lifelong health outcomes," Sonawalla said.
