Comparison of father-offspring and mother-offspring associations of cardiovascular risk factors: family linkage within the population-based HUNT Study, Norway

Background Cardiovascular risk factors are transmitted from parents to offspring; however, the relative contributions of fathers and mothers remain unclear. If maternal exposures during pregnancy influence offspring through the intrauterine environment, associations between mothers and offspring are expected to be stronger than between fathers and offspring. In this family linkage study we compared father-offspring and mother-offspring associations of several cardiovascular risk factors. Methods The study population consisted of 36 528 father-mother-offspring trios who participated at one or more surveys of the HUNT Study, Norway in 1984-86, 1995-97 and 2006-08. Parent-offspring associations were assessed using unstandardized and standardized residuals from linear regression analysis, and possible non-paternity was accounted for in sensitivity analyses. Results Age- and sex-adjusted parent-offspring associations for anthropometric factors, blood pressure, blood lipids, blood glucose and resting heart rate were largely similar between fathers and mothers. Use of standardized values and analyses adjusted for non-paternity further emphasized this similarity. Conclusions This study found largely similar father-offspring and mother-offspring associations across all cardiovascular risk factors under study, arguing against strong maternal effects transmitted through intrauterine mechanisms.