Cholesterol is a type of fat that is essential for our body to work well. Among its roles, it helps the body make use of hormones and vitamins. Our bodies make cholesterol, but we also get cholesterol from food. When we eat too many foods high in fat we can start to have a build-up of cholesterol in our bodies, especially in our blood vessels. We know that having too much bad cholesterol (called Low-Density Lipoprotein or LDL-cholesterol) in our blood can result in forming a layer that sticks to the inside walls of our blood vessels, making them thinner and sometimes blocking them, which can result heart disease, such as having a heart attack.

We know what levels of LDL-cholesterol are considered too high in adults, but we know very little about what normal and high levels of LDL-cholesterol are in children. We know cholesterol is important for brain development, that cholesterol may go up and down at certain ages in children, but there are very few studies of how cholesterol changes normally throughout childhood and adolescence. We also know little about how young people’s cholesterol is related to their growth and health (for example, weight and blood pressure), or whether it is related to early signs of heart disease in early adulthood.

We will answer these questions using this cohort. The results will be important for the general population and for children who have certain conditions that require medications to lower their cholesterol in childhood.