Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of the ENRICA cohort according to quartiles of the MEDLIFE index
| Mediterranean lifestyle index (MEDLIFE) | p-value* | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 (5–11 p) | Q2 (12–13 p) | Q3 (14–15 p) | Q4 (16–23 p) | ||
| Number of participants | 3042 | 3435 | 2917 | 1696 | |
| MEDLIFE score, range 0–27 p | 10.0 (1.16) | 12.5 (0.50) | 14.5 (0.50) | 16.8 (1.09) | < 0.001 |
| Block 1: Mediterranean food consumption, 0–15 p | 3.8 (1.25) | 5.1 (1.24) | 6.2 (1.23) | 7.6 (1.38) | < 0.001 |
| Block 2: Mediterranean eating habits, 0–6 p | 3.6 (0.87) | 3.9 (0.82)) | 4.2 (0.80) | 4.5 (0.77) | < 0.001 |
| Block 3: Mediterranean physical activity, rest, social habits and conviviality, 0–6 p | 2.6 (1.13) | 3.5 (1.16) | 4.1 (1.1) | 4.7 (1.0) | < 0.001 |
| Sex, female, % | 54.9 | 53.0 | 52.5 | 52.4 | 0.189 |
| Age, years | 47.8 (17.0) | 45.8 (16.1) | 45.9 (16.0) | 46.3 (15.0) | 0.311 |
| Educational level, % | < 0.001 | ||||
| ≤ Primary | 30.3 | 27.2 | 24.7 | 22.6 | |
| Secondary | 44.4 | 43.9 | 43.5 | 40.7 | |
| University | 25.4 | 29.0 | 31.9 | 36.7 | |
| Smoking status, % | < 0.001 | ||||
| Never | 44.2 | 47.7 | 50.3 | 48.5 | |
| Former | 21.8 | 24.3 | 24.7 | 29.3 | |
| Current | 34.0 | 28.0 | 25.0 | 22.2 | |
| BMI, kg/m2 | 26.8 (4.8) | 26.6 (4.6) | 26.3 (4.3) | 26.2 (4.1) | < 0.001 |
| Energy intake, kcal/day | 2274 (944) | 2232 (864) | 2226 (747) | 2238 (683) | 0.08 |
| Number of drug treatments | 0.71 (1.32) | 0.65 (1.26) | 0.61 (1.22) | 0.62 (1.21) | 0.006 |
| Morbiditiesa, % | 44.6 | 40.0 | 36.3 | 34.6 | < 0.001 |
| Number of morbidities | 0.66 (1.0) | 0.63 (0.95) | 0.56 (0.90) | 0.52 (0.88) | < 0.001 |
| Chronic conditions | |||||
| Depression, % | 7.9 | 7.2 | 5.4 | 4.2 | < 0.001 |
| Cancer, % | 1.0 | 0.8 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 0.59 |
| Respiratory disease, % | 8.1 | 7.0 | 6.5 | 5.5 | 0.005 |
| Components of the metabolic syndrome | |||||
| Abdominal obesityb | 36.8 | 34.4 | 31.9 | 28.1 | < 0.001 |
| Fasting blood glucose 100–126 mg/dl, n | 5.3 | 5.1 | 4.8 | 3.6 | 0.046 |
| Blood pressure ≥ 130/85 mmHg, | 44.9 | 45.6 | 42.1 | 42.9 | 0.021 |
| Triglycerides ≥ 150 mg/dl | 18.7 | 16.9 | 15.6 | 14.2 | < 0.001 |
| Low HDL-Cc | 27.9 | 26.4 | 23.4 | 20.5 | < 0.001 |
| HOMA-IR | 2.1 (1.70) | 2.0 (1.6) | 1.9 (1.4) | 1.8 (1.3) | < 0.001 |
| Hs-CRP, geometric mean (standard error) | 0.14 (0.0) | 0.14 (0.0) | 0.12 (0.0) | 0.12 (0.0) | < 0.001 |
Continuous variables are expressed as mean (standard deviation)
BMI body mass index, kcal kilocalories, CVD cardiovascular disease, Hs-CRP highly sensitive C-reactive protein, HOMA-IR Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance, m meters, MET metabolic equivalent of task, p points
*Continuous variables were compared across categories of MEDLIFE using anova; categorical variables were compared using chi-squared tests
aAt least one self-reported physician-diagnosed disease (coronary heart disease, stroke and heart failure, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, respiratory disease, hip fracture, urinary infection, sleep apnea, depression, Alzheimer’s disease, cirrhosis, Parkinson’s disease, stomach ulcers, intestinal polyps, cataracts, periodontal disease, cancer)
bAbdominal obesity: waist circumference ≥ 102 cm in men, and ≥ 88 in women
cHDL-C level < 40 mg/dl in men or < 50 in women