The Bogalusa Heart Study has been a long-term epidemiologic study. The investigators have identified and followed black and white participants for nearly 40 years, and have described the incidence and prevalence of biologic and behavioral cardiovascular disease risk factors from childhood through adulthood. Their participation has enabled the study to not only document differences between males and females, but also between blacks and whites. The results from the Bogalusa Heart Study have clearly documented that the genesis of atherosclerosis has its basis in childhood, and that prevention can and must begin at the early ages.