Cohort Profile: The Children’s Health in London and Luton (CHILL) cohort

Why was the cohort set up?Air pollution contributes to >8.1 million annual deaths worldwide and poses the largest environmental risk to health [1, 2].This burden disproportionately affects the most disadvantaged and vulnerable members of society [3].In Europe, nearly 800 000 excess deaths per year are attributed to poor air quality Key Features The Children's Health in London and Luton (CHILL) cohort was established to investigate the impact of London's Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) on children's health.Key strengths of CHILL include: the parallel prospective cohort, natural experimental design in which children living in London (exposed to the ULEZ) and children living in Luton (not exposed to a ULEZ or other major air-pollution control measure) are followed over time and compared; its large size (compared with similar studies) and ethnic diversity; high-resolution air pollution exposure data; and objective physiological measurements of lung function. In total, 3414 participants (aged 6-9 years; 52% female) were recruited in central London (intervention site, n 1664) and Luton (comparator site, n 1750).Baseline health assessments took place in 2018-19, prior to implementation of the ULEZ, with four annual follow-up assessments. Attrition ranged from 6.9% in the first follow-up year to 33.8% in the final year, with 1590 participants remaining after 5 years (n 754London, n 836 Luton). Data were collected by using questionnaires, health assessments, and physical-activity monitoring.Study outcomes assessed include lung-function growth, physical activity, transport use, cognitive function and mental health indicators, healthcare utilization, personal and socioeconomic health determinants, and air-pollution exposures.

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Publication Details

Journal
International Journal of Epidemiology
Published
2025-04-12
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyaf055
Primary Topic
Health disparities and outcomes
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

Cohort Profile: The Children’s Health in London and Luton (CHILL) cohort

Sean Beevers, Chris Griffiths, Bill Day, Frank J. Kelly et al.
International Journal of Epidemiology
Health disparities and outcomes
article

Cohort Profile: The Children’s Health in London and Luton (CHILL) cohort

Sean Beevers, Chris Griffiths, Bill Day, Frank J. Kelly, Helen E. Wood, Harpal Kalsi, Louise Cross, Aziz Sheikh, Jasmine Chavda, Veronica Toffolutti, Ian Mudway, Chris Newby, Monica Fletcher, Esther M. F. van Sluijs, Florian Tomini, Jonathan Grigg, Gurch Randhawa, Borislava Mihaylova, Grainne Colligan, Hajar Hajmohammadi, Ivelina Tsocheva, James Scales, Rosamund Dove, W. James Gauderman
article en

Abstract

Why was the cohort set up?Air pollution contributes to >8.1 million annual deaths worldwide and poses the largest environmental risk to health [1, 2].This burden disproportionately affects the most disadvantaged and vulnerable members of society [3].In Europe, nearly 800 000 excess deaths per year are attributed to poor air quality Key Features The Children's Health in London and Luton (CHILL) cohort was established to investigate the impact of London's Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) on children's health.Key strengths of CHILL include: the parallel prospective cohort, natural experimental design in which children living in London (exposed to the ULEZ) and children living in Luton (not exposed to a ULEZ or other major air-pollution control measure) are followed over time and compared; its large size (compared with similar studies) and ethnic diversity; high-resolution air pollution exposure data; and objective physiological measurements of lung function. In total, 3414 participants (aged 6-9 years; 52% female) were recruited in central London (intervention site, n 1664) and Luton (comparator site, n 1750).Baseline health assessments took place in 2018-19, prior to implementation of the ULEZ, with four annual follow-up assessments. Attrition ranged from 6.9% in the first follow-up year to 33.8% in the final year, with 1590 participants remaining after 5 years (n 754London, n 836 Luton). Data were collected by using questionnaires, health assessments, and physical-activity monitoring.Study outcomes assessed include lung-function growth, physical activity, transport use, cognitive function and mental health indicators, healthcare utilization, personal and socioeconomic health determinants, and air-pollution exposures.

International Journal of EpidemiologyVol. 54(3)
University of Southern California (US), University of Nottingham (GB), University of Bedfordshire (GB), Queen Mary University of London (GB), University of Cambridge (GB), University of Oxford (GB), MRC Epidemiology Unit (GB), MRC Centre for Environment and Health, Imperial College London (GB)
UK Research and Innovation, Barts Charity, National Institute for Health and Care Research, Department of Health and Social Care, Imperial College London, Medical Research Council, Natural Environment Research Council
Gender equality
Openalex Percentile: Top 85%
Health disparities and outcomes
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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