The cross-sectional study used serum lipid and lipoprotein and dietary data collected in 1994 and 1995 in American and Western Samoa to compare the American and Western Samoans. Quantitative determinations were made of lipid and apolipoprotein levels differences between the two groups. Estimates were made of the effects of dietary intake, body size, and smoking on lipid and apolipoproteins. Cross-sectional analyses were performed on genetic factors influencing lipid and lipoprotein levels. Statistical analyses were conducted to test hypotheses about gene-environment interactions and gene-gene interactions in polynesians from American Samoa and Western Samoa.