In recent years, a variety of birth cohorts have been established worldwide, and more are in progress. An impetus for this development is the increasing awareness of the long-term health effects of intrauterine and early life combined with a renewed attention to the life-course approach in epidemiology.

The aim of Birthcohorts.net is to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and collaboration between cohorts and researchers. In addition, we would like to provide administrators, policy makers and other stakeholders with information about available cohort data on health and its determinants.

Read more about the background for this website here.

You will find the list of birth cohorts that have provided information to this website in the Inventory of Birth Cohorts together with key information such as number of participants and contact persons. If you click on the cohort name you will learn more about design and data. You can also use the search feature in order to search for cohorts with information on specific exposures, outcomes, biological samples, or health and development.

The inventory is not complete. Principal investigators of birth cohorts not yet included in the inventory are encouraged to register their birth cohort.