Table 5.
Subgroup analysis for EF and EI.
| Exposure | Subgroup | Number of Studies | Q | p-Value | I2 (%) | β (95% CI) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gender | male | 3 | 14.66 | 0.001 | 86.36% | 211.64 (121.28,301.99) |
| female | 3 | 10.69 | 0.005 | 81.29% | 181.47 (136.54,226.39) | |
| mixed | 3 | 244.50 | <0.0001 | 99.18% | −2.39 (−151.72,146.94) | |
| Education | unadjusted | 5 | 2112.69 | <0.0001 | 99.81% | 95.52 (−44.97,236.01) |
| adjusted | 4 | 16.54 | 0.001 | 81.86% | 168.69 (99.90,237.48) | |
| Obesity | unadjusted | 7 | 429.35 | <0.0001 | 98.60% | 91.44 (−7.71,190.59) |
| adjusted | 2 | 37.43 | <0.0001 | 97.33% | 237.84 (171.63,304.05) | |
| Smoking | unadjusted | 4 | 130.94 | <0.0001 | 97.71% | 116.86 (−19.31,253.03) |
| adjusted | 5 | 978.60 | <0.0001 | 99.59% | 132.10 (−32.41,296.61) | |
| Alcohol | unadjusted | 5 | 348.72 | <0.0001 | 98.85% | 54.18 (−64.21,172.57) |
| adjusted | 4 | 56.66 | <0.0001 | 94.71% | 213.13 (158.69,267.56) | |
| PA | unadjusted | 3 | 28.67 | <0.0001 | 93.02% | 84.44 (−45.45,214.33) |
| adjusted | 6 | 982.47 | <0.0001 | 99.49% | 144.53 (1.66,287.41) | |
| SES | unadjusted | 5 | 2114.63 | <0.0001 | 99.76% | 91.91 (−36.71,220.54) |
| adjusted | 3 | 11.96 | 0.003 | 83.28% | 190.89 (119.52,262.27) | |
| EF definition | 1 | 5 | 51.52 | <0.0001 | 93.05% | 212.11 (166.56,257.66) |
| 2 | 2 | 217.64 | <0.0001 | 99.54% | −91.68 (−272.25,88.89) | |
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 189.46 (117.63,261.29) | ||
| 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 72.23 (−29.2,173.66) | ||
| Diet Assessment | self-report | 5 | 57.67 | 93.06% | 209.42 (160.63,258.21) | |
| food records | 3 | 104.19 | 98.08% | 93.13 (−64.79,251.05) | ||
| dietary recalls | 1 | 0 | 1 | −184.23 (−208.71,−159.75) | ||
| Reference Group | EF = 1–2 | 3 | 38.67 | <0.0001 | 94.87% | 226.28 (170.14,282.43) |
| EF = 3 | 3 | 13.10 | 0.0014 | 84.74% | 151.58 (49.92,253.23) | |
| EF = 4 | 2 | 266.31 | <0.0001 | 99.62% | 11.06 (−372.35,394.46) | |
| EF was continuous | 1 | 0 | 1 | |||
| Total | 9 | 2297.53 | <0.0001 | 99.65% | 125.36(21.76,228.97) | |
PA, physical activity; SES, social economic status; EF (eating frequency) definition: 1: both meals and snacks were included to evaluate EF; 2: an eating occasion as any instance in which participants reported consumption of solid meals and snacks, with a minimum gap of 15 min between two eating episodes; 3: excluded snacks to evaluate EF; 4: the minimum gap between two eating episodes was an hour.