TABLE 1.
Distribution of covariates by Mediterranean Diet Score (MDS) category and age-adjusted associations with breast density among 1,286 participants in the Minnesota Breast Cancer Family Study.
| Mediterranean Diet Score1 | Percent Breast Density
|
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Variable | 0–3 (N=457) | 4–5 (N=520) | 6–9 (N=309) | Beta2 | SE | p-value |
| Mean (±SD) age (y) | 54.5 (12.2) | 57.8 (11.6) | 59.4 (10.9)3 | −0.5 | 0.04 | <0.0001 |
| Level of education (%) | ||||||
| < high school | 13 | 10 | 10 | Referent | -- | -- |
| high school graduate | 43 | 41 | 28 | 1.7 | 1.2 | 0.2 |
| some college | 28 | 33 | 38 | 1.8 | 1.2 | 0.2 |
| college graduate+ | 16 | 16 | 243 | 4.6 | 1.3 | 0.003 |
| Mean (±SD) BMI (kg/m2) | 27.3 (6.4) | 27.0 (5.1) | 26.6 (5.5) | −1.2 | 0.08 | <0.0001 |
| Mean (±SD) WHR | 0.84 (0.07) | 0.83 (0.08) | 0.82 (0.08) | −5.7 | 0.6 | <0.0001 |
| Mean (±SD) age at menarche (y) | 13.0 (1.6) | 12.9 (1.4) | 12.9 (1.5) | 1.1 | 0.3 | <0.0001 |
| Parity and age at first live birth (%) | ||||||
| Nulliparous | 10 | 12 | 10 | Referent | -- | -- |
| 1–2, >20 years | 25 | 25 | 27 | −3.3 | 1.6 | 0.03 |
| 1–2, ≤20 years | 8 | 7 | 6 | −7.7 | 1.9 | <0.0001 |
| 3+, >20 years | 34 | 38 | 38 | −6.3 | 1.6 | <0.0001 |
| 3+, ≤20 years | 23 | 19 | 19 | −8.9 | 1.7 | <0.0001 |
| Postmenopausal (%) | 63 | 76 | 793 | −6.4 | 1.4 | <0.0001 |
| Hormone replacement use (%) | ||||||
| 0 years | 58 | 52 | 45 | referent | -- | -- |
| 1–5 years | 23 | 24 | 26 | −0.1 | 1.0 | 0.96 |
| ≥6 years | 20 | 24 | 294 | 3.4 | 1.1 | 0.002 |
| Smoking status (%) | ||||||
| Never | 49 | 58 | 59 | referent | -- | -- |
| Former | 30 | 30 | 34 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 0.4 |
| Current | 20 | 12 | 73 | −0.05 | 1.4 | 0.97 |
| Relation to proband | ||||||
| Married in | 34 | 38 | 38 | referent | -- | -- |
| Second-degree relative | 46 | 46 | 45 | 1.6 | 0.9 | 0.07 |
| First-degree relative | 19 | 17 | 17 | 2.6 | 1.3 | 0.05 |
| Mean (±SD) energy intake (kcal) | 1803 (618) | 2010 (655) | 2096 (629)3 | −0.002 | 0.001 | <0.0001 |
| Mean (±SD) servings/week | ||||||
| Vegetables | 13.8 (9.1) | 22.2 (12.6) | 31.9 (15.1)3 | 0.0 | 0.04 | 0.99 |
| Legumes | 2.1 (1.7) | 3.4 (3.2) | 4.9 (3.3)3 | 0.08 | 0.18 | 0.65 |
| Fruits and nuts | 13.2 (9.4) | 21.2 (11.5) | 28.9 (14.2)3 | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.39 |
| Cereals | 5.7 (6.6) | 9.9 (8.7) | 12.4 (8.0)3 | −0.11 | 0.12 | 0.37 |
| Fish | 0.8 (0.8) | 1.4 (1.7) | 2.3 (1.8)3 | 0.27 | 0.26 | 0.31 |
| Dairy | 25.3 (13.7) | 24.3 (13.4) | 19.8 (11.8)3 | 0.03 | 0.08 | 0.70 |
| Meats | 9.7 (6.1) | 9.2 (5.4) | 8.6 (5.2)5 | −0.27 | 0.09 | 0.002 |
| Mean (±SD) alcohol intake (g) | 4.9 (11.5) | 4.2 (9.0) | 4.2 (6.4) | 0.11 | 0.05 | 0.02 |
| Mean (±SD) ratio of monounsaturated:saturated fat | 1.1 (0.2) | 1.2 (0.2) | 1.2 (0.2)3 | −1.5 | 2.7 | 0.57 |
| Mean (±SD) percent density | 24.1 (16.6) | 21.5 (15.9) | 22.2 (14.5)5 | -- | -- | -- |
Number of MDS categories (out of 9) for which the subject was assigned a positive value.
Betas represent absolute estimated mean change in percent breast density per unit increment in continuous variables (age, BMI, age at menarche, dietary intake) but per 0.1 increment in WHR. For nominally coded predictor variables, betas represent absolute mean change in percent breast density relative to referent category. Associations with age are unadjusted, whereas all other associations are adjusted for age.
p<0.0001, assessing the association between Mediterranean diet score and covariates; p-values were determined by Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel test statistic for categorical variables or by analysis-of-variance of continuous variables.
p<0.01
p<0.05