Issues for Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factor Development in Europe

A review of U.S. and European clinical trials and cardiovascular prevention studies indicates a strong relation among cardiovascular disease risk factors and between metabolic factors and health behaviors established in youth. Social and behavioral determinants of risk are best modified by strategies applied in schools, families, and whole communities to provide a firm base for primordial prevention of risk factor development. This is illustrated with results from a European intervention trial and from observational studies in the young.