Table 2.
Baseline characteristics of the population according to current asthma (n=53,101), E3N Study-France
| Current asthma (n=1,063) | No asthma (n=52,038) | p* | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 52.5 ± 6.5† | 52.7 ± 6.5 | 0.3 |
| Caloric intake (kilocalories/day) | 2190 ± 602 | 2176 ± 569 | 0.4 |
| Physical activity (metabolic equivalent/week) | 45.8 ± 30.0 | 46.4 ± 30.2 | 0.6 |
| Body mass index (kg/m2) | 24.8 ± 4.6 | 23.8 ± 3.6 | <0.001 |
| Body mass index (kg/m2) (%) | |||
| < 20 | 9.7 | 11.5 | |
| 20–24.9 | 49.2 | 58.5 | <0.001 |
| 25–29.9 | 29.5 | 24.0 | |
| ≥ 30 | 11.6 | 6.0 | |
| Tobacco consumption (%) | |||
| Never smokers | 51.3 | 56.4 | |
| Ex smokers | 38.6 | 34.0 | 0.003 |
| Current smokers | 10.1 | 9.6 | |
| Menopausal status (%) | |||
| Premenopause | 5.6 | 4.6 | |
| Postmenopause | 94.4 | 95.3 | 0.3 |
| Perimenopause | 0.0 | 0.1 | |
| Education (number of years of school) (%) | |||
| ≤12 years | 11.7 | 10.7 | |
| 14 years | 48.3 | 51.9 | 0.15 |
| 16 years | 20.4 | 19.0 | |
| 17 years | 19.6 | 18.4 | |
| Multivitamin supplement use (%)‡ | 43.0 | 37.2 | <0.001 |
| Hay fever ever (%) | 27.8 | 5.1 | <0.001 |
| Use of bronchodilators (%) | 48.3 | 0.8 | <0.001 |
| Use of inhaled steroids (%) | 31.9 | 1.2 | <0.001 |
*
t tests were used for continuous variables and chi-square tests were used for categorical variables.
†
Mean ± SD (all such variables).
‡
Includes used of calcium, fluorine, iron, magnesium, phytoestrogens (soy), other minerals/trace-elements, vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, folic acid, beta carotene, other vitamins. Recorded in 2003.