Table 1. Characteristics of participants enrolled in an ancillary study of the Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study at Baylor College of Medicine or Wake Forest School of Medicine between February 1995 and July 1998.
| Variable | Age < 65 years (n = 403) | Age ≥65 years (n = 209) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| < 3% weight gain(n = 234) | ≥3% weight gain(n = 169) | < 3% weight gain(n = 154) | ≥3% weight gain(n = 55) | |||||
| n | (%) | n | (%) | n | (%) | n | (%) | |
| Race | ||||||||
| African American | 37 | (15.8) | 26 | (15.4) | 22 | (14.3) | 9 | (16.4) |
| White | 197 | (84.2) | 143 | (84.6) | 132 | (85.7) | 46 | (83.6) |
| Occupation | ||||||||
| No | 106 | (45.3) | 75 | (44.4) | 136 | (88.3) | 47 | (85.5) |
| Yes | 128 | (54.7) | 94 | (55.6) | 18 | (11.7) | 8 | (14.5) |
| Cancer | ||||||||
| No | 212 | (90.6) | 155 | (91.7) | 126 | (81.8) | 47 | (85.5) |
| Yes | 22 | (9.4) | 14 | (8.3) | 28 | (18.2) | 8 | (14.5) |
| Diabetes | ||||||||
| No | 225 | (96.2) | 161 | (95.3) | 143 | (92.9) | 52 | (94.5) |
| Yes | 9 | (3.8) | 8 | (4.7) | 11 | (7.1) | 3 | (5.5) |
| Hypertension | ||||||||
| No | 160 | (68.4) | 112 | (66.3) | 94 | (61.0) | 34 | (61.8) |
| Yes | 74 | (31.6) | 57 | (33.7) | 60 | (39.0) | 21 | (38.2) |
| Cardiovascular disease | ||||||||
| No | 203 | (86.8) | 146 | (86.4) | 124 | (80.5) | 39 | (70.9) |
| Yes | 31 | (13.2) | 23 | (13.6) | 30 | (19.5) | 16 | (29.1) |
| Oral contraceptive use | ||||||||
| No | 136 | (58.1) | 88 | (52.1) | 132 | (85.7) | 46 | (83.6) |
| Yes | 98 | (41.9) | 81 | (47.9) | 22 | (14.3) | 9 | (16.4) |
| Exogenous estrogen use | ||||||||
| Never | 42 | (17.9) | 32 | (18.9) | 57 | (37.0) | 20 | (36.4) |
| Former | 18 | (7.7) | 18 | (10.7) | 29 | (18.8) | 7 | (12.7) |
| Current | 174 | (74.4) | 119 | (70.4) | 68 | (44.2) | 28 | (50.9) |
| Age at menopause in years, median (range) | 48 | (30–64) | 46 | (30–63)* | 50 | (32–71) | 49 | (32–72) |
| Number of Pregnancy history | ||||||||
| None | 20 | (8.5) | 9 | (5.3) | 10 | (6.5) | 5 | (9.1) |
| 1–2 | 93 | (39.7) | 65 | (38.5) | 57 | (37.0) | 14 | (25.5) |
| ≥3 | 121 | (51.7) | 95 | (56.2) | 87 | (56.5) | 36 | (65.5) |
| METs at baseline (METs·hour·week-1) | ||||||||
| < 10 | 172 | (73.5) | 130 | (76.9) | 116 | (75.3) | 40 | (72.7) |
| ≥10 | 62 | (26.5) | 39 | (23.1) | 38 | (24.7) | 15 | (27.3) |
| Sleep disturbance, median (range) ** | 13.0 | (4.0–18.0) | 14.0 | (4.0–18.0) | 13.0 | (5.0–18.0) | 14.0 | (4.0–17.0) |
| Smoking status | ||||||||
| Never | 132 | (56.4) | 84 | (49.7) | 84 | (54.5) | 34 | (61.8) |
| Former | 88 | (37.6) | 69 | (40.8) | 65 | (42.2) | 17 | (30.9) |
| Current | 14 | (6.0) | 16 | (9.5) | 5 | (3.2) | 4 | (7.3) |
| Depression † | ||||||||
| < 0.06 | 193 | (82.5) | 135 | (79.9) | 140 | (90.9) | 46 | (83.6) |
| ≥0.06 | 41 | (17.5) | 34 | (20.1) | 14 | (9.1) | 9 | (16.4) |
| Lifetime partner | ||||||||
| None | 1 | (0.4) | 2 | (1.2) | 4 | (2.6) | 2 | (3.6) |
| With men or women | 233 | (99.6) | 167 | (98.8) | 150 | (97.4) | 53 | (96.4) |
| BMI at baseline, kg/m2, median (range) | 26.9 | (17.9–59.5) | 26.9 | (16.8–45.5) | 25.6 | (15.4–51.6) | 27.2 | (18.3–42.3) |
| BMI at 35 years, kg/m2, median (range) | 21.9 | (13.5–40.7) | 22.0 | (15.9–59.8) | 21.4 | (14.0–38.6) | 21.8 | (17.4–39.5) |
| Waist/hip at baseline, ratio, median (range) | 0.789 | (0.640–1.095) | 0.795 | (0.660–1.062) | 0.798 | (0.663–1.116) | 0.796 | (0.623–0.984) |
| Weight change for the past 2 years, kg, median (range) ¶ | 4.5 | (0.0–37.2) | 5.9 | (0.0–36.3)* | 3.6 | (0.0–45.8) | 5.0 | (0.9–17.2)* |
| ≥10 pounds lost intentionally within the past 20 years ‡ | ||||||||
| No | 92 | (39.3) | 47 | (27.8)* | 76 | (49.4) | 29 | (52.7) |
| Yes | 142 | (60.7) | 122 | (72.2) | 78 | (50.6) | 26 | (47.3) |
| Total calories, kcal, median (range) | 1556 | (635–4729) | 1482 | (642–4087) | 1456 | (658–4800) | 1363 | (614–3315)* |
| Dietary alcohol, g, median (range) | 0.0 | (0.0–83.6) | 0.0 | (0.0–70.4) | 0.0 | (0.0–165.9) | 0.0 | (0.0–23.3)* |
| Percent calories from SFA, median (range) | 11.2 | (1.9–19.3) | 11.1 | (5.1–21.3) | 10.5 | (3.4–18.2) | 11.6 | (4.6–18.3) |
| Percent calories from MFA, median (range) | 12.6 | (1.9–23.4) | 12.8 | (4.3–23.1) | 12.0 | (5.1–19.9) | 13.6 | (5.6–18.5) |
| Percent calories from PFA, median (range) | 7.2 | (2.0–23.4) | 7.0 | (2.9–17.8) | 6.7 | (2.1–14.6) | 7.6 | (2.7–13.2) |
| Dietary fiber, g, median (range) | 15.8 | (4.8–40.6) | 15.8 | (4.6–32.9) | 16.2 | (5.2–38.2) | 13.2 | (4.6–34.5)* |
BMI, body mass index; MET, metabolic equivalent; MFA, monounsaturated fatty acids; PFA, polyunsaturated fatty acids; SFA, saturated fatty acids.
* P < 0.05, chi-square test or Wilcoxon rank-sum test.
** Sleep disturbance score was computed by summing 5 components of relevant questionnaires in the Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study, where a higher score indicates greater sleep disturbance.
† Depression scores were estimated via Burnam's algorithm and categorized using 0.06 as a cutoff-point to detect depressive disorders [43].
¶ Weight change was assessed at the third annual visit.
‡ Intentional weight loss of more than 10 pounds was examined within the past 20 years, when participants were not pregnant or sick.