Final answer:
Rosenman et al. led the study evaluating fitness impact on CHD, closely following other pivotal research like Doll and Hill's British Doctors Study, Stanford's elderly runners study, and the Framingham Heart Study, all contributing to the understanding of cardiovascular risk factors.
Step-by-step explanation:
The leaders in evaluating the effect of fitness on Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) in an ongoing Cohort Longitudinal Study (CLS) that followed 10,000 men and 3,000 women for 8 years include Rosenman, R. H., Brand, R. J., Jenkins, C. D., Friedman, M., Straus, R., & Wurm, M. Their influential study, published in 1975 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, concluded that certain personality traits might contribute to the risk of developing CHD.
Other significant studies in this field include the British Doctors Study by Doll and Hill, which started in 1951 and assessed the link between smoking and lung cancer, the Stanford University study on elderly runners, and research by Stürmer et al. and Whang et al. examining lifestyle factors like personality and depression in relation to cardiovascular risks. Framingham Heart Study by Haynes, S. G., Feinleib, M., & Kannel, W. B. is an equally notable investigation that connected psychosocial factors to coronary disease.
These studies collectively provide valuable insights into how lifestyle, affect, and psychosocial factors may influence the incidence of cardiovascular diseases and form a substantial basis for ongoing research and health policy formulation such as those outlined by the CDC's Million Hearts initiative.