Table 1.
Age-standardized characteristics of the study population at baseline by categories of alcohol consumption.
| NHS (n=74,841) at 1984 Baseline | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abstainers(n=17,196) | Former Drinkers(n=6,260) | 0.1–4.9 g/day(n=24,966) | 5.0–14.9 g/day(n=16,128) | 15.0–29.9 g/day(n=6,064) | ≥30 g/day(n=4,227) | |
| Age, years, mean (SD) | 50.7 (7.3) | 50.8 (7.4) | 49.9 (7.3) | 50.4 (7.1) | 50.9 (6.9) | 51.6 (6.8) |
| Current smokers, % | 17 | 25 | 22 | 27 | 29 | 46 |
| Prevalent Diagnosis | ||||||
| Hypertension, % | 24 | 26 | 21 | 19 | 20 | 27 |
| Diabetes, % | 5 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Hyperlipidemia, % | 10 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 9 |
| MI or angina, % | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Cancer, % | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 |
| BMI, kg/m2, mean (SD) | 25.9 (5.3) | 25.9 (5.3) | 25.1 (4.7) | 24.0 (3.8) | 23.7 (3.6) | 24.0 (3.9) |
| White race/ethnicity, % | 93 | 93 | 94 | 95 | 96 | 95 |
| Physical activity, METs/week, mean (SD) | 11.6 (17.8) | 13.5 (22.6) | 14.4 (21.9) | 15.6 (22.5) | 16.8 (23.1) | 14.0 (19.4) |
| NHS II (n=93,444) at 1991 Baseline | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abstainers(n=12,461) | Former Drinkers(n=27,401) | 0.1–4.9 g/day(n=36,194) | 5.0–14.9 g/day(n=13,876) | 15.0–29.9 g/day(n=2,497) | ≥30 g/day(n=1,015) | |
| Age, years, mean (SD) | 36.8 (4.5) | 36.6 (4.6) | 36.4 (4.7) | 36.6 (4.7) | 37.4 (4.6) | 38.0 (4.3) |
| Current smokers, % | 4 | 12 | 13 | 17 | 23 | 38 |
| Prevalent Diagnosis | ||||||
| Hypertension, % | 7 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 7 |
| Diabetes, % | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Hyperlipidemia, % | 14 | 16 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 13 |
| MI or angina, % | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Cancer, % | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| BMI, kg/m2, mean (SD) | 25.1 (5.8) | 25.6 (5.9) | 24.3 (5.0) | 23.3 (4.0) | 23.3 (3.8) | 23.6 (4.3) |
| White race/ethnicity, % | 91 | 96 | 97 | 98 | 98 | 98 |
| Physical activity, METs/week, mean (SD) | 17.1 (23.3) | 19.1 (26.4) | 21.7 (27.4) | 24.7 (30.9) | 24.8 (28.8) | 23.2 (29.3) |
| HPFS (n=49,157) at 1986 Baseline | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abstainers(n=5,044) | Former Drinkers(n=6,626) | 0.1–4.9 g/day(n=11,862) | 5.0–14.9 g/day(n=13,345) | 15.0–29.9 g/day(n=6,456) | ≥30 g/day(n=5,824) | |
| Age, years, mean (SD) | 53.2 (9.6) | 55.6 (10.2) | 53.5 (10.0) | 53.9 (9.7) | 53.9 (9.5) | 55.6 (9.6) |
| Current smokers, % | 5 | 9 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 21 |
| Prevalent Diagnosis | ||||||
| Hypertension, % | 20 | 24 | 21 | 21 | 23 | 27 |
| Diabetes, % | 4 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Hyperlipidemia, % | 10 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 |
| MI or angina, % | 6 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| Cancer, % | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| BMI, kg/m2, mean (SD) | 25.0 (5.0) | 25.1 (5.3) | 25.0 (5.1) | 24.8 (5.0) | 24.8 (4.8) | 25.0 (5.0) |
| White race/ethnicity, % | 94 | 93 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 97 |
| Physical activity, METs/week, mean (SD) | 15.7 (23.1) | 17.4 (24.9) | 17.7 (24.3) | 20.1 (27.2) | 21.2 (29.5) | 18.8 (26.0) |
Abbreviations: BMI = body mass index; g = grams; HPFS = Health Professionals Follow-up Study; kg = kilograms; m = meter; MET = metabolic equivalent of task; MI = myocardial infarction; NHS = Nurses’ Health Study; SD = standard deviation.