Table 1.
Characteristics of Participants From the Medical Research Council National Survey of Health and Development With Data on Monitored Physical Activity and Sedentary Time and at Least 1 Biomarker at Age 60 to 64 Years
| Men (n=795) | Women (n=827) | P Sex Difference | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cardiovascular disease biomarkers (geometric mean [95% CI]) | |||
| Inflammatory markers | |||
| C‐reactive protein (mg/L) | 2.2 (2.1, 2.3) | 2.4 (2.2, 2.5) | 0.700 |
| IL‐6 (pg/mL) | 2.1 (2.0, 2.2) | 2.0 (1.9, 2.1) | 0.108 |
| Endothelial markers | |||
| Tissue‐plasminogen activator (ng/mL) | 8.9 (8.5, 9.3) | 8.0 (7.7, 8.4) | <0.001 |
| E‐selectin (ng/mL) | 36.2 (35.1, 37.4) | 34.1 (33.1, 35.2) | 0.004 |
| Adipokines | |||
| Leptin (ng/mL) | 7.3 (6.9, 7.7) | 20.0 (19.0, 21.2) | <0.001 |
| Adiponectin (μg/mL) | 8.8 (8.3, 9.2) | 15.9 (15.3, 16.6) | <0.001 |
| Physical activity variables (median [25th, 75th percentiles]) | |||
| PAEE (kJ/kg per day) | 35.7 (26.9, 47.5) | 33.5 (25.2, 41.8) | <0.001 |
| Sedentary time (<1.5 METs) (h/d) | 17.9 (16.2, 19.4) | 18.0 (16.6, 19.4) | 0.317 |
| Light‐intensity activity (1.5–3 METs) (h/d) | 5.2 (4.0, 6.5) | 5.4 (4.3, 6.7) | 0.042 |
| MVPA (>3 METs) (h/d) | 0.7 (0.3, 1.2) | 0.4 (0.2, 0.8) | <0.001 |
| Covariates | |||
| Educational level (N [(%)]) | |||
| None | 238 (31.5) | 237 (30.0) | <0.001 |
| Vocational/O‐level GCSEs | 153 (20.3) | 285 (36.1) | |
| A‐level GCSEs | 236 (31.3) | 220 (27.9) | |
| Degree or equivalent | 128 (17.0) | 47 (6.0) | |
| Occupational class (N [%]) | |||
| I&II | 444 (55.9) | 331 (40.0) | <0.001 |
| IIINM | 85 (10.7) | 289 (35.0) | |
| IIIM | 192 (24.2) | 65 (7.9) | |
| IV&V | 74 (9.3) | 142 (17.2) | |
| Smoking history (N [%]) | |||
| Current smoker | 71 (9.8) | 89 (11.6) | 0.013 |
| Ex‐smoker | 440 (60.4) | 405 (52.9) | |
| Never smoked | 217 (29.8) | 272 (35.5) | |
| Long‐term illness, health problem, or disability (N [%]) | |||
| No | 624 (78.3) | 619 (74.7) | 0.085 |
| Yes | 173 (21.7) | 210 (25.3) | |
| Ever diagnosed with diabetes mellitus (N [%]) | |||
| No | 672 (92.6) | 730 (94.6) | 0.115 |
| Yes | 54 (7.4) | 42 (5.4) | |
| Ever diagnosed with angina or MI (N [%]) | |||
| No | 650 (91.4) | 718 (96.6) | <0.001 |
| Yes | 61 (8.6) | 25 (3.4) | |
| Ever diagnosed with stroke (N [%]) | |||
| No | 712 (97.9) | 759 (98.6) | 0.347 |
| Yes | 15 (2.1) | 11 (1.4) | |
| Use of β‐blockers (N [%]) | |||
| No | 706 (88.4) | 749 (90.1) | 0.248 |
| Yes | 93 (11.6) | 82 (9.9) | |
| Use of antihypertensive and/or heart failure drugs (N [%]) | |||
| No | 611 (76.5) | 686 (82.6) | 0.002 |
| Yes | 188 (23.5) | 145 (17.5) | |
| Use of nitrates (N [%]) | |||
| No | 680 (85.1) | 750 (90.3) | 0.002 |
| Yes | 119 (14.9) | 81 (9.8) | |
| Use of lipid‐lowering drugs (N [%]) | |||
| No | 564 (70.6) | 673 (81.0) | <0.001 |
| Yes | 235 (29.4) | 158 (19.0) | |
| Diastolic blood pressure (mm Hg) (arithmetic mean (95% [CI]) | 79.4 (78.7, 80.1) | 75.8 (75.2, 76.5) | <0.001 |
| Fat mass index (kg/m1.2) (arithmetic mean [95% CI]) | 7.7 (7.5, 7.8) | 11.0 (10.8, 11.3) | <0.001 |
Mean (SD) in physical activity (PA) parameters for men and women, respectively: PA energy expenditure=38.3 (15.8) and 34.5 (13.4) kJ/kg per day, moderate‐to‐vigorous‐intensity PA=0.9 (0.8) and 0.6 (0.6) h/d, light‐intensity PA=5.4 (1.8) and 17.9 (2.1) h/d, sedentary time=17.7 (2.2) and 17.9 (2.1) h/d. CI indicates confidence interval; GCSEs, General Certificate of Secondary Education; IL‐6, interleukin‐6; METs, metabolic equivalents of task; MI, myocardial infarction; MVPA, moderate‐to‐vigorous physical activity; PAEE, physical activity energy expenditure.