Table 1.
Characteristics of participants according to BCAA intake levels.
| BCAA Intake Levels (g/d) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | |
| n | 1213 | 1213 | 1213 | 1213 |
| BCAA intake, range (median) | 0.44–4.13 (3.18) | 4.14–5.95 (5.03) | 5.96–8.43 (7.04) | 8.44–45.70 (10.69) |
| Isoleucine intake | 0.70 ± 0.01 | 1.17 ± 0.01 | 1.68 ± 0.01 | 2.82 ± 0.01 |
| Leucine intake | 1.41 ± 0.02 | 2.31 ± 0.02 | 3.24 ± 0.02 | 5.37 ± 0.02 |
| Valine intake | 0.96 ± 0.02 | 1.55 ± 0.02 | 2.18 ± 0.02 | 3.53 ± 0.02 |
| Total energy intake (kcal) | 1088.26 ± 13.81 | 1461.26 ± 13.81 | 1773.66 ± 13.81 | 2389.64 ± 13.81 |
| Handgrip strength (kg) | 20.02 ± 0.24 | 22.64 ± 0.24 | 24.80 ± 0.24 | 27.77 ± 0.24 |
| Age (years) | 74.18 ± 0.14 | 73.17 ± 0.14 | 72.18 ± 0.14 | 71.23 ± 0.14 |
| Sex | ||||
| Men | 306 (25.2) | 457 (37.7) | 584 (48.2) | 777 (64.1) |
| Women | 907 (74.8) | 756 (62.3) | 629 (51.9) | 436 (35.9) |
| Education level | ||||
| Less than high school graduation | 940 (87.0) | 876 (79.5) | 797 (70.7) | 653 (57.1) |
| High school graduation or higher | 140 (13.0) | 226 (20.5) | 331 (29.3) | 490 (42.9) |
| Household income | ||||
| Low | 730 (60.4) | 629 (52.3) | 537 (44.6) | 388 (32.2) |
| Mid-low | 283 (23.4) | 339 (28.2) | 316 (26.3) | 368 (30.5) |
| Mid-high | 127 (10.5) | 132 (11.0) | 199 (16.5) | 248 (20.6) |
| High | 68 (5.6) | 102 (8.5) | 152 (12.6) | 202 (16.8) |
| Physical activity level 1 | ||||
| Low | 444 (41.1) | 363 (32.9) | 339 (30.0) | 276 (24.2) |
| Mid | 365 (33.8) | 397 (36.0) | 404 (35.8) | 401 (35.1) |
| High | 271 (25.1) | 342 (31.0) | 386 (34.2) | 464 (40.7) |
| Body mass index (kg/m2) | ||||
| <23 | 454 (37.8) | 442 (36.7) | 470 (38.8) | 436 (36.0) |
| 23–<25 | 301 (25.0) | 332 (27.6) | 292 (24.1) | 343 (28.4) |
| ≥25 | 447 (37.2) | 429 (35.7) | 448 (37.0) | 431 (35.6) |
| Dietary supplement | ||||
| Non-users | 716 (59.0) | 614 (50.6) | 613 (50.5) | 550 (45.4) |
| Users | 497 (41.0) | 599 (49.4) | 600 (49.5) | 662 (54.6) |
| Alcohol consumption | ||||
| Non-drinkers | 709 (62.1) | 590 (50.9) | 529 (44.9) | 410 (34.7) |
| Drinkers | 432 (37.9) | 569 (49.1) | 649 (55.1) | 772 (65.3) |
| Smoking status | ||||
| Non-smokers | 1051 (92.1) | 1055 (91.1) | 1064 (90.7) | 1048 (88.7) |
| Current smokers | 90 (7.9) | 103 (8.9) | 109 (9.3) | 134 (11.3) |
BCAA, branched-chain amino acid; Q, quartile. Values are expressed as the mean ± standard error or n (%). 1 The physical activity level was calculated in terms of metabolic equivalent tasks (METs-h/week) and categorized into tertiles.