Table 1.
Baseline clinical and life-style characteristics of the study population
| Characteristics | Men N = 289 (42%) | Women N = 402 (58%) | All N = 691 |
|---|---|---|---|
| MetS criteria present, n (%) | 98 (34) | 116 (29) | 214 (31) |
| Age, years, mean (SD) | 45.3 (6.2) | 45.1 (6.5) | 45.2 (6.2) |
| BMI, mean (SD) | 26.8 (3.5) | 26.3 (5.2) | 26.6 (4.6) |
| Waist, cm, mean (SD) | 94.2 (10.2) | 83.4 (12.3) | 87.9 (12.6) |
| FP-glucose mmol/L, mean (SD) | 5.9 (0.9) | 5.6 (0.6) | 5.8 (0.8) |
| BP systolic, mmHg, mean (SD) | 137.7 (16.5) | 132.2 (18.2) | 134.4 (0.7) |
| BP diastolic, mmHg, mean (SD) | 83.5 (9.7) | 79.4 (9.5) | 81.1 (9.8) |
| HDL-C, mmol/L, mean (SD) | 1.3 (0.3) | 1.5 (0.3) | 1.4 (0.3) |
| Triglycerides, mmol/L, mean (SD) | 1.7 (1.3) | 1.2 (0.6) | 1.4 (1.0) |
| ALT (U/L) mean (SD) | 18.0 (10.9) | 12.0 (7.6) | 14.5 (9.6) |
| Hs-CRP (mg/L), mean (SD) | 1.7 (3.9) | 1.7 (2.3) | 1.7 (3.0) |
| Life-style factors, n (%) | |||
| Current smoker | 80 (28) | 82 (20) | 162 (23) |
| Current use of alcohol | |||
| Low (nothing) | 36 (12) | 85 (21) | 121 (18) |
| Moderate | 167 (58) | 290 (72) | 457 (66) |
| High | 86 (30) | 27 (7) | 113 (16) |
| Physical activity n (%): | |||
| Low | 41 (14) | 54 (13) | 95 (14) |
| Moderate | 161 (56) | 240 (60) | 401 (58) |
| High | 87 (30) | 108 (27) | 195 (28) |
BMI: Body mass index; FP-glucose: fasting plasma glucose; BP systolic: systolic blood pressure; BP diastolic: diastolic blood pressure; HDL-C: high density cholesterol; Hs-CRP: high sensitivity C-reactive protein; ALT: alanine aminotransferase.
Current use of alcohol was considered low with no use of alcohol, moderate with use of <2 portions/day, and high with use of >2 portions/day. Physical activity was considered to be high in subjects who exercised at least 30 minutes daily in their leisure time, moderate in subjects who exercised at least three times per week, and low if exercising frequency was less than three times per week.