Table 1.
Demographic and clinical characteristics of betel quid chewers and non-chewers (n = 391). Statistically significant results are shown in bold font
| Characteristics | Chewers | Non-chewers | p |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total participants, n (%) | 182 (46.6%, CI: 0.42-0.52) | 209 (53.5%, CI: 0.48-0.59) | |
| Male sex, n (%) | 120 (65.9%) | 140 (67.0%) | 0.826 |
| Female sex, n (%) | 62 (34.1%) | 69 (33.0%) | |
| Age (yrs.), mean (SD) | 44.1 ± 14.1 | 41.27 ± 15.9 | 0.061 |
| Age, n (%) | <0.05 | ||
| <19 | 6 (3.3%) | 26 (12.4%) | |
| 20-29 | 27 (14.8%) | 33 (15.8%) | |
| 30-39 | 34 (18.7%) | 33 (15.8%) | |
| 40-49 | 43 (23.6%) | 49 (23.4%) | |
| 50-59 | 42 (23.1%) | 37 (17.7%) | |
| ≥60 | 30 (16.5%) | 31 (14.8%) | |
| Education, n (%) | <0.001 | ||
| Illiterate | 6 (3.3%) | 1 (0.4%) | |
| Read & write | 14 (7.7%) | 3 (1.4%) | |
| Primary school | 43 (23.6%) | 30 (14.4%) | |
| Secondary school | 56 (30.8%) | 53 (25.4%) | |
| High school | 34 (18.7%) | 52 (24.9%) | |
| University | 14 (7.7%) | 18 (8.6%) | |
| Graduate | 15 (8.2%) | 52 (24.9%) | |
| Occupation, n (%) | <0.001 | ||
| Government servant | 14 (7.6%) | 23 (11.0%) | |
| Company employee | 7 (3.8%) | 36 (17.2%) | |
| Own business | 64 (35.2%) | 77 (36.8%) | |
| Students | 5 (2.8%) | 4 (1.9%) | |
| Unemployed | 5 (2.8%) | 3 (1.4%) | |
| Labourer | 23 (12.6%) | 17 (8.1%) | |
| Farmer | 2 (1.1%) | 1 (0.5%) | |
| Pensioner | 12 (6.6%) | 12 (5.7%) | |
| Driver | 36 (19.8%) | 35 (16.8%) | |
| Others | 14 (7.7%) | 1 (0.5%) | |
| Marital status, n (%) | <0.001 | ||
| Married | 126 (69.2%) | 113 (54.0%) | |
| Single | 38 (20.9%) | 84 (40.2%) | |
| Divorced | 4 (2.2%) | 1 (0.5%) | |
| Widow/Widower | 14 (7.7%) | 11 (5.3%) | |
| Family history, n (%) | |||
| Diabetes mellitus | 11 (6%) | 20 (11.0%) | <0.05 |
| Hypertension | 34 (18.7%) | 44 (21.1%) | 0.558 |
| Cardiovascular disease | 3 (1.6%) | 8 (3.8%) | 0.194 |
| Smoking, n (%) | <0.05 | ||
| Current smoker | 46 (25.3%) | 38 (18.1%) | |
| Ex-smoker | 17 (9.3%) | 11 (5.3%) | |
| Non-smoker | 119 (65.4%) | 160 (76.6%) | |
| Alcohol drinking, n (%) | <0.001 | ||
| Current drinker | 70 (38.4%) | 41 (19.6%) | |
| Ex-drinker | 26 (14.3%) | 16 (7.7%) | |
| Non-drinker | 86 (47.3%) | 152 (72.7%) | |
| Exercise, n (%) | 79 (43.4%) | 86 (41.2%) | 0.652 |
*
NS=not significant