The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, known to its participants as ‘Children of the 90s’ (Figure 1), originated in a WHO Europe sponsored meeting held in Moscow in 1985 recommending the establishment of birth cohort studies across Europe to investigate modifiable influences on child health and development. Jean Golding subsequently designed the methodology1 for the European Longitudinal Study of Pregnancy and Childhood (ELSPAC),2 a pan-European series of longitudinal birth cohorts. The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, centred on the city of Bristol in the South West of England, was one of these cohorts. The ALSPAC acronym originally denoted the ‘Avon Longitudinal Study of Pregnancy and Childhood’ reflecting the original study focus. As follow-up beyond early childhood was developed, ALSPAC was renamed the ‘Avon Longitudinal Study of “Parents and Children” ’ to reflect the continuing importance of the parents as well as the children.
