Table 1.
Study participant characteristics at baseline according to life-course occupational social class trajectories—the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (N = 7846)
| Life-course social trajectoriesa |
Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stable high | Upward | Downward | Stable low | Pb | ||
| N (%) | 1084 (13.8) | 2697 (34.4) | 2439 (31.1) | 1626 (20.7) | 7846 | |
| Age | 65.3 (9.5) | 65.9 (9.5) | 66.9 (9.7) | 67.1 (9.6) | <0.001 | 66.4 (9.6) |
| Men, N (%) | 508 (46.9) (481) | 1389 (51.5) | 1494 (61.3) | 900 (55.4) | <0.001 | 4291 (54.7) |
| CVD mortality (N, ratec) | 42 (5.1) | 136 (6.0) | 130 (6.4) | 130 (9.8) | 0.121 | 438 (6.7) |
| Behavioural factors | ||||||
| Current smoking, N (%) | 79 (7.3) | 352 (13.1) | 388 (15.9) | 347 (21.3) | <0.001 | 1166 (14.9) |
| Physical inactivity, N (%) | 98 (9.0) | 358 (13.3) | 411 (16.9) | 370 (22.8) | <0.001 | 1237 (15.8) |
| Daily alcohol consumption, N (%) | 409 (37.8) | 681 (25.3) | 510 (21.9) | 254 (15.6) | <0.001 | 1854 (23.6) |
| BMI | 27.1 (4.7) | 27.8 (4.7) | 27.9 (4.7) | 28.8 (5.3) | <0.001 | 27.9 (4.9) |
| Psychosocial factors | ||||||
| Loneliness score | 0.84 (1.3) | 1.04 (1.5) | 1.24 (1.6) | 1.42 (1.7) | <0.001 | 1.14 (1.5) |
| Social network size | 8.78 (5.6) | 8.54 (5.9) | 8.66 (5.9) | 8.35 (5.9) | 0.146 | 8.57 (5.8) |
| Positive support score | 7.88 (1.7) | 7.86 (1.7) | 7.74 (1.9) | 7.70 (1.8) | 0.001 | 7.80 (1.8) |
| Negative support score | 2.29 (1.7) | 2.38 (1.7) | 2.51 (1.9) | 2.48 (1.8) | 0.001 | 2.43 (1.8) |
| Physiological factors | ||||||
| Systolic blood pressure (mmHg) | 133.1 (18.2) | 134.9 (18.7) | 135.6 (9.0) | 136.2 (18.9) | <0.001 | 135.0 (18.7) |
| DBP (mmHg) | 74.6 (11.0) | 75.2 (11.4) | 74.6 (11.0) | 74.4 (11.3) | 0.110 | 74.8 (11.2) |
| Total cholesterol (mmol/l) | 5.95 (1.2) | 5.82 (1.2) | 5.85 (1.2) | 5.74 (1.2) | <0.001 | 5.83 (1.2) |
| Triglycerides (mmol/l) | 1.70 (1.1) | 1.81 (1.1) | 1.82 (1.2) | 1.95 (1.2) | <0.001 | 1.83 (1.2) |
| Inflammatory markers | ||||||
| CRP (mg/l) | 3.39 (7.6) | 4.10 (8.4) | 4.35 (7.8) | 4.93 (8.9) | <0.001 | 4.25 (8.2) |
| Fibrinogen (g/l) | 3.09 (0.6) | 3.23 (0.7) | 3.27 (0.7) | 3.33 (0.7) | <0.001 | 3.25 (0.7) |
Results are mean (SD) unless otherwise reported.
aLife-course social trajectories are based on trajectories from father’s occupational position to the participants’ own occupational class.
bp for linear trend across socio-economic categories.
cAge and sex-adjusted mortality rate per 1000 person-years.