TABLE 3.
Knowledge of cardiovascular risk factors questionnaire: item responses.
| Factor | Effect | Item text | Correct answer | |
| N | % | |||
| Modifiable factors | ||||
| Obesity | R | Suffering obesity | 113 | 94 |
| Tobacco consumption | R | Smoking cigarettes | 111 | 93 |
| A diet high in salt | R | Eating food with lots of salt | 108 | 90 |
| Raised blood glucose | R | Having high blood sugar levels (glucose) | 108 | 90 |
| A diet high in saturated fats | R | Having a diet rich in saturated fats (e.g., butter, cream, pastries, processed meat) | 108 | 90 |
| A diet high in trans fats | R | Eating foods high in trans fats (e.g., hamburgers, cakes, chips) | 107 | 89 |
| Mediterranean diet | P | Following the Mediterranean diet: high consumption of vegetable products, bread and other cereals, with olive oil as the main fat. | 107 | 89 |
| High levels of triglycerides | R | Having high triglyceride levels (lipids, a type of blood fat) | 107 | 89 |
| Hypertension | R | Having hypertension (high blood pressure) | 106 | 88 |
| Consumption of fresh vegetables | P | Eating fresh vegetables | 105 | 88 |
| Low density lipoprotein (LDL) levels | R | Having high levels of low density lipoprotein (LDL) (”bad” cholesterol) | 104 | 87 |
| Alcohol consumption | R | Drinking alcohol excessively | 104 | 87 |
| Overweight | R | Being overweight | 103 | 86 |
| Diabetes | R | Having diabetes or prediabetes | 102 | 85 |
| A diet high in omega-3 fatty acids | P | Having a diet rich in omega-3 fats (e.g., fish, nuts) | 101 | 84 |
| Abdominal fat | R | Having a lot of abdominal fat (around the waist) | 101 | 84 |
| Soft sugary drink consumption | R | Drinking sugary drinks (for instance, coke, fanta…) | 99 | 83 |
| Fresh fruit consumption | P | Eating fresh fruits | 99 | 83 |
| Fish consumption | P | Eating fish | 92 | 77 |
| Sitting for prolonged periods of time | R | Spending many hours a day sitting (e.g., watching TV, driving) | 91 | 76 |
| Physical activity | P | Doing physical exercise (walking, running, dancing…) | 87 | 73 |
| High waist-to-hip ratio | R | Having high waist-to-hip ratio (e.g., a prominent belly) | 83 | 69 |
| Fiber consumption | P | Eating foods high in fiber (e.g., legumes, potatoes) | 73 | 61 |
| High-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol | P | Having high HDL (“good”) cholesterol | 23 | 19 |
| Uncontrollable factors | ||||
| Personal history of CVD | R | Having had cardiovascular disease previously (e.g., a heart attack or stroke) | 110 | 92 |
| Genetic predisposition | R | Genetic predisposition | 108 | 90 |
| Family history of CVD | R | Having a family history (a direct family member who has had or died from cardiovascular disease before age 55) | 108 | 90 |
| Passive smoking | R | Being exposed to tobacco smoke (e.g., being exposed to tobacco smoke from someone who smokes around you) | 100 | 83 |
| Age | R | Being older (por instance, more than 65 years old) | 85 | 71 |
| Sex | R | Being male | 72 | 60 |
| Ethnicity | R | Being form African or Asian ethnicity | 17 | 14 |
| Psychosocial factors | ||||
| Type-D personality (negative affectivity) | R | Feeling strong negative emotions frequently | 106 | 88 |
| Stress at work | R | Suffering stress at work | 105 | 88 |
| Stress at home | R | Suffering stress at home | 104 | 87 |
| Major stressful life events | R | Having experienced stressful life events in recent years (for instance, going through unemployment, divorce, or the death of a close family member) | 104 | 87 |
| Depression | R | Suffering depression | 104 | 87 |
| Anxiety | R | Suffering frequent anxiety | 104 | 87 |
| Financial stress | R | Suffering economic stress (for instance, not being able to make ends meet, having loans to return) | 100 | 83 |
| Social isolation | R | Feeling alone or socially isolated | 93 | 78 |
| Type-D personality (social inhibition) | R | Not expressing the negative emotions one feels (keeping quiet or not mentioning them) | 89 | 74 |
| Social support | P | Having high social support (support from the people around you) | 78 | 65 |
| Being poor/Low income | R | Having low income | 75 | 63 |
| Education | P | Having high education (for instance, having gone to university and finished one’s studies) | 29 | 24 |
| Locus of control | P | Thinking that you have the control over events that happen around you | 7 | 6 |
| Fictitious causes | ||||
| Type-A personality (urgency) | NE | Being impatient (e.g., feeling in a hurry and needing to go/act fast frequently) | 79 | 66 |
| Risky sexual behavior | NE | Having unprotected sex with multiple partners | 71 | 59 |
| Pregnancy | NE | Being pregnant (for women) | 61 | 51 |
| Mosquito bites | NE | Being bitten by a mosquito carrying a virus | 60 | 50 |
| Sun exposure | NE | Sunbathing excessively or using sunbeds | 57 | 48 |
| Radiation exposure | NE | Exposure to X-rays and other sources of radiation | 37 | 31 |
| Type-A personality (competitiveness) | NE | Being competitive in everything you do | 32 | 27 |
| Type-A personality (hostility) | NE | Being a hostile person, one who gets angry easily | 13 | 11 |
Effect on cardiovascular risk: R, risk factor; P, protective; NE, no effect.