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Illnesses in childhood may hinder future career advancement, scientists claim
Last reviewed: 30.06.2025
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Childhood illnesses are closely linked to a person's health in adulthood and even career development, say scientists from University College London (UK), led by Professor Mika Kivimaki. They can say this based on the results of their work, partly funded by the British Medical Research Council and the British Heart Foundation.
Researchers examined career information from 1991 to 2004 for more than 8,300 civil servants. They found that if a person had not undergone hospital treatment for a month or more as a child, they were more likely to achieve significant career advancement. In addition, subjects who had no career complaints were heavier at birth.
In contrast, those at the bottom of the career ladder were more likely to be born underweight and, as adults, to have a high body mass index, a larger waist size, and potentially dangerous levels of cholesterol, insulin, and blood sugar—all factors known to increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.
Mika Kivimaki notes that the study was conducted on a group of civil servants during a strictly defined period, so its results cannot be extrapolated to everyone. However, the scientists' findings clearly demonstrate that our social environment can influence the likelihood of developing heart disease.
Ellen Mason, senior nurse at the British Heart Foundation, critically notes that there are a myriad of causes for childhood illnesses; often, babies are found to have congenital defects (the same heart defect). In short, the conclusions made by the British should in no way depress parents - if only because many people who had health problems in childhood eventually became wonderful actors, directors, scientists, military leaders, etc.
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