Table 2.
Baseline characteristics of the participants included in the pooled analyses by cohorts (medians and interquartile ranges [IQR] or percentages)
| ATBC | Health 2000 | HBCS | DILGOM 2007 | FINRISK 2012 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age, years | 57 (8) | 50 (22) | 60 (4) | 53 (22) | 53 (24) |
| Low educational attainmenta, % | 78 | 33 | 34 | 30 | 33 |
| Current smoker, % | 100 | 26 | 24 | 18 | 17 |
| Inactive in leisure time, % | 42 | 28 | 31 | 19 | 20 |
| Body mass index, kg/m2 | 26 (5) | 26 (6) | 27 (6) | 26 (6) | 26 (6) |
| HRT use (women), ever % | - | 31 | 68 | 16 | 14 |
| Energy, MJ/d | 10.8 (4.0) | 9.1 (3.9) | 8.7 (4.0) | 9.9 (4.5) | 8.9 (4.1) |
| Dietary fibre, g/d | 17 (13) | 23 (13) | 25 (14) | 29 (16) | 24 (14) |
| Alcohol (100%), g/d | 11 (23) | 2 (7) | 5 (11) | 4 (9) | 4 (9) |
| Dairy products, g/d | 699 (502) | 546 (466) | 436 (435) | 584 (509) | 579 (516) |
| Substitution variables | |||||
| Red meat, g/week | 455 (273) | 511 (343) | 420 (350) | 511 (406) | 462 (357) |
| Processed meat, g/week | 420 (406) | 252 (336) | 210 (280) | 280 (350) | 266 (343) |
| Whole grainsb, g/week | 700 (595) | 406 (406) | 378 (357) | 532 (441) | 483 (455) |
| Vegetablesc, g/week | 658 (588) | 1526 (1295) | 1722 (1449) | 1848 (1533) | 1589 (1323) |
| Fruits, g/week | 756 (819) | 1099 (1435) | 1512 (1897) | 1491 (1687) | 1085 (1274) |
| Legumes, g/week | 28 (35) | 63 (63) | 56 (63) | 70 (70) | 70 (70) |
ATBC, the Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta-Carotene Cancer Prevention Study; Health 2000, the Health 2000 Health Examination Survey; HBCS, the Helsinki Birth Cohort Study; DILGOM 2007, the DIetary, Lifestyle and Genetic Determinants of Obesity and Metabolic Syndrome 2007 Study; FINRISK 2012, the National FINRISK 2012 Study; HRT, hormone replacement therapy
aIn all cohorts except for ATBC, participants were categorised into those with low, middle or high educational attainment according to cohort-specific tertiles of self-reported school years, considering sex and birth year. In ATBC, low educational attainment corresponded to elementary or lower education.
bWhole grain intake was assessed based on the combined consumption of rye, oat and barley (32).
cVegetables excluding legumes and potatoes and including nuts and seeds