1970s: the early years

It’s April 1970. Simon and Garfunkel have topped the UK charts with A Bridge Over Troubled Water, the Beatles’ split has hit the headlines, and the crew of Apollo 13 are preparing for lift off.

Meanwhile, in hospitals and homes up and down the country, thousands of new babies, all born within a week of each other, are being recruited to what will become one of the longest running and most important studies of its kind – the 1970 British Cohort Study.

Growing up in the 1970s – an animated tour So, that was the 1970s. And what a decade it was! To round off the momentous first ten years of the study, we’re celebrating with a whistle stop animated tour of decade.

Important discoveries from the Age 5 Survey Thanks to findings from the Age 5 Survey we have increased our understanding of the benefits of breastfeeding, the links between TV viewing and adult obesity, and the influence of parenting practices on children’s later attitudes. Age 5 Survey – Understanding mothers During the Age 5 Survey, mums were asked about maternal depression and their child’s behaviour. Life stories – Jo What has it been like to take part in the study? Over the year we’ll be speaking to our study members about their lives and what the study means to them. This week we speak to Jo.

Childhood educational inequalities Few pieces of longitudinal research have had such an impact on government policy as Leon Feinstein’s analysis of BCS70, which examined the links between family background and children’s cognitive development. 22 month and 42 month surveys Almost 5,000 children and mothers took part in the 22 months and 42 months sweeps, which explored the impact of foetal nutrition on early development. Life stories – Mike With five decades of invaluable service to British science and society, what has it been like for BCS70 members to take part in the study? This month we speak to Mike.

Smoking in pregnancy Thanks to BCS70 data collected at birth and in later surveys, researchers around the world have made important discoveries about the risks of smoking in pregnancy. The birth survey BCS70 followed a similar sample design as the 1958 study recruiting all children born in England, Scotland and Wales during a single week in 1970. The origins of the 1970 British Cohort Study The 1970 British Cohort Study (BCS70) began life as the British Births Survey (BBS) and aimed to collect information about all babies born in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland during a single week in April 1970. More than 17,000 babies were included in the survey.