Early household smoke exposure and children's heart health
Early life household air pollution, metal composition and cardiovascular health: Evidence from GRAPHS
Researchers are looking at whether smoke from cooking fires and metals in the air affect heart and blood vessel health in children who were exposed before or soon after birth.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11137127 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
This project follows children from a pregnancy cohort in Ghana to see how prenatal and first-year exposure to household cooking smoke and the metals carried in that smoke relate to heart and blood vessel health up to age 12. The team measures early-life air pollution levels and metal content, and then uses standard, well-established tests of cardiovascular health in the children over time. The work builds on the existing GRAPHS cohort so researchers can link exposure data from pregnancy and infancy to later childhood measures. Results aim to point toward practical ways to reduce harmful exposures and protect kids' long-term heart health.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are children (and their families) enrolled in or similar to the Ghana GRAPHS cohort who had prenatal or early-life exposure to household cooking smoke.
Not a fit: People without early-life exposure to household air pollution, adults outside the cohort, or those living far from the study sites are unlikely to directly benefit from participating.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the findings could point to cost-effective ways to reduce household smoke and metal exposures and improve long-term heart health for children in affected communities.
How similar studies have performed: Prior research links air pollution to heart disease in adults and some child studies exist, but long-term follow-up tying prenatal and infancy household smoke and metal exposures to childhood cardiovascular outcomes is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
New York, United States
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai — New York, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Lee, Alison G — Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
- Study coordinator: Lee, Alison G
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.