Table 2.
Age‐Standardized Characteristics of the Whole Study Population of Nurses and by Quintiles of Adherence to the AHEI in High School (N=27 406)
| Total Study Population | Quintiles of High School AHEI | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Q5 | ||
| No. | 27 406 | 5481 | 5481 | 5481 | 5481 | 5482 |
| High school AHEI score, median | 41.9 | 29.9 | 36.6 | 41.6 | 46.7 | 55.6 |
| Range | 11.3–87.9 | 11.3–33.8 | 33.9–39.1 | 39.2–43.9 | 44.0–49.6 | 49.7–87.9 |
| Age at 1997 questionnaire return, ya | 42.0 (4.6) | 41.5 (4.6) | 42.0 (4.6) | 42.1 (4.6) | 42.3 (4.6) | 42.3 (4.7) |
| High school AHEI component scoresb | ||||||
| Vegetables | 4.9 (2.5) | 3.3 (1.7) | 4.2 (2.0) | 4.7 (2.2) | 5.6 (2.4) | 6.9 (2.5) |
| Fruit | 3.5 (2.2) | 2.3 (1.5) | 2.9 (1.7) | 3.4 (1.9) | 4.0 (2.1) | 5.2 (2.6) |
| Whole grains | 3.0 (2.0) | 1.9 (1.3) | 2.4 (1.6) | 2.8 (1.7) | 3.3 (2.0) | 4.5 (2.5) |
| Nuts and legumes | 2.2 (3.1) | 1.0 (2.2) | 1.8 (2.8) | 2. 2 (3.0) | 2.6 (3.2) | 3.3 (3.8) |
| PUFAs | 5.4 (3.1) | 3.5 (2.6) | 4.7 (2.9) | 5.5 (3.0) | 6.1 (3.0) | 7.1 (2.9) |
| Dark meat fish | 2.0 (2.4) | 1.0 (1.6) | 1.5 (2.0) | 1.8 (2.2) | 2.2 (2.4) | 3.4 (3.0) |
| SSBs and juices | 4.8 (1.9) | 3.9 (2.0) | 4.4 (1.9) | 4.7 (1.8) | 5.1 (1.8) | 5.7 (1.7) |
| Red/processed meats | 5.8 (1.6) | 5.3 (1.5) | 5.6 (1.5) | 5.8 (1.6) | 5.9 (1.6) | 6.2 (1.7) |
| Trans fats | 5.0 (3.1) | 4.1 (3.0) | 4.8 (3.1) | 5.1 (3.1) | 5.4 (3.2) | 5.8 (3.1) |
| High sodium foods | 5.4 (3.6) | 2.7 (2.8) | 4.5 (3.3) | 5.7 (3.3) | 6.5 (3.3) | 7.6 (4.0) |
| High school characteristics | ||||||
| BMI at age 18 y, kg/m² | 20.9 (2.9) | 20.8 (2.9) | 20.8 (2.9) | 20.9 (2.8) | 21.0 (2.9) | 20.9 (2.8) |
| Smoking, % | 22 | 22 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 20 |
| Physical activity, MET/wk | 54.1 (17.5) | 52.0 (17.4) | 53.1 (17.5) | 53.9 (17.4) | 55.0 (17.5) | 56.7 (17.3) |
| Energy intake, kcal/d | 2725 (781) | 2789 (719) | 2720 (758) | 2732 (791) | 2711 (805) | 2664 (819) |
| Adult characteristics | ||||||
| AHEI‐2010 score | 45.3 (10.2) | 39.9 (9.4) | 43.4 (9.5) | 44.8 (9.4) | 47.1 (9.3) | 51.3 (9.7) |
| Energy intake, kcal/d | 1814 (548) | 1803 (534) | 1801 (549) | 1813 (552) | 1829 (547) | 1819 (558) |
| Alcohol intake, 0 g/d, % | 39 | 42 | 39 | 38 | 36 | 37 |
| 0.1 to 4.9 g/d, % | 38 | 38 | 39 | 38 | 39 | 39 |
| ≥5 g/d, % | 23 | 20 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 24 |
| BMI, kg/m² | 24.6 (4.9) | 24.8 (5.0) | 24.6 (5.0) | 24.7 (4.9) | 24.6 (5.0) | 24.2 (4.8) |
| Physical activity, MET/wk‡ | 18.2 (15.5) | 15.5 (14.4) | 17.0 (15.1) | 17.8 (15.3) | 19.1 (15.6) | 21.7 (16.3) |
| Current smoking, % | 8 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 7 |
| Parity, no children, % | 19 | 17 | 18 | 18 | 20 | 23 |
| 1 to 2 children, % | 53 | 54 | 51 | 54 | 53 | 53 |
| 3 to 4 children, % | 26 | 28 | 29 | 26 | 26 | 23 |
| 5+ children, % | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Current oral contraceptive use, % | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| Postmenopausal, % | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 |
| Current postmenopausal hormone use, % | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 |
| Current aspirin use, % | 12 | 12 | 13 | 11 | 13 | 12 |
| African ancestry, % | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Hispanic ancestry, % | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Asian ancestry, % | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Other non‐Caucasian ancestry, % | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Family history of MI, % | 28 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 25 |
| Family history of diabetes mellitus, % | 14 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 13 |
| Family history of hypertension, % | 49 | 51 | 50 | 50 | 48 | 47 |
Values are expressed as means (SD), median, or percentages. Alternate Healthy Eating Index indicates AHEI; BMI, body mass index; MET, metabolic equivalent of task hours; MI, myocardial infarction; Q, quartile.
a
Value is not age‐adjusted.
b
Scores were 0 to 10 with 10 being the highest intake for vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts and legumes, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), and dark meat fish, and 10 being the lowest intake for sugar‐sweetened beverages (SSBs) and juices, red/processed meats, trans fats, and high sodium foods.