Table 1.
Characteristics a of the study population in the NHS (1994) across self-reported unrestrained eating b,c
| Eating anything at any time | No concern with figure change | Eating anything at any time + no concern with figure change | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| ||||||
| Characteristic | No n=49333 |
Yes n=14666 |
No n=42423 |
Yes n=23416 |
No i n=32890 |
yes n=7571 |
| Age, years, mean (SD) | 60.3 (7.1) | 59.9 (7.2) | 60.2 (7.1) | 60.1 (7.2) | 60.3 (7.1) | 59.7 (7.3) |
| Race | ||||||
| White | 97.7 | 97.0 | 97.4 | 98.0 | 97.4 | 97.2 |
| Black | 1.4 | 1.4 | 1.6 | 0.9 | 1.6 | 1.1 |
| Other | 0.9 | 1.6 | 1.0 | 1.1 | 1.0 | 1.6 |
| BMI, kg/m2, mean (SD) d,e | 26.3 (4.9) | 27.1 (6.1) | 25.3 (4.3) | 28 (5.9) | 25.3 (4.2) | 27.9 (6.3) |
| BMI at age 18, kg/m2, mean (SD) d | 21.3 (2.9) | 21.2 (3) | 21.1 (2.8) | 21.6 (3.1) | 21.2 (2.8) | 21.4 (3.1) |
| Waist circumference, cm, mean (SD) | 86.8 (11.7) | 88.4 (13.1) | 85.2 (11.2) | 89.9 (12.7) | 85.3 (11.1) | 89.9 (13.4) |
| Smoking status | ||||||
| Never smoked | 45.4 | 40.8 | 44.6 | 44.3 | 45.1 | 40.7 |
| Past smoker | 43.6 | 36.9 | 44.1 | 40.1 | 44.5 | 36.7 |
| Current smoker<25 cigs/day | 9.2 | 17.5 | 9.6 | 12.4 | 8.8 | 17.4 |
| Current smoker≥25 cigs/day | 1.8 | 4.7 | 1.7 | 3.3 | 1.5 | 5.2 |
| Pack-years of smoking, mean (SD) f | 22.6 (19.8) | 29.5 (23.1) | 22.2 (19.5) | 26.4 (22.0) | 21.7 (19.2) | 30.1 (23.5) |
| Alcohol intake, g/day, mean (SD) | 5.0 (8.9) | 5.2 (10.2) | 5.2 (8.8) | 4.8 (9.5) | 5.2 (8.8) | 5.2 (10.5) |
| Physical activity, MET-hours/week, mean (SD) g | 21.2 (24.6) | 17.7 (23.5) | 23 (26.2) | 17 (21.6) | 23.1 (25.9) | 16.4 (22.2) |
| AHEI, mean (SD) | 49.4 (9.7) | 45.1 (9.7) | 49.9 (9.7) | 46.7 (9.7) | 50.2 (9.6) | 44.3 (9.5) |
| EDIH, ≥ median | 50.3 | 64.9 | 47.0 | 62.2 | 46.1 | 68.3 |
| Total calories intake, kcal/day, mean (SD) | 1711.0 (501.6) | 1824.8 (557) | 1699.1 (504.6) | 1783.9 (526.4) | 1691.5 (498.5) | 1849.1 (559.5) |
| Regular use of aspirin, >2 tablets/week | 28.1 | 27.2 | 27.8 | 28.1 | 27.8 | 27.4 |
| Multivitamin use | 48.3 | 41.9 | 49.5 | 43.5 | 49.9 | 40.6 |
| Postmenopausal | 89.2 | 88.3 | 89.4 | 88.2 | 89.5 | 88.0 |
| Current postmenopausal hormone use | 40.5 | 34.5 | 42.7 | 34.9 | 42.8 | 32.8 |
| History of hypertension | 23.7 | 21.5 | 21.2 | 26.0 | 21.9 | 23.3 |
| History of hypercholesterolemia e | 29.8 | 23.4 | 28.7 | 28.1 | 29.5 | 23.8 |
| History of diabetes e | 2.8 | 1.6 | 1.9 | 3.4 | 2.0 | 1.9 |
| Family history of cancer | 25.3 | 24.9 | 25.2 | 24.8 | 25.4 | 24.7 |
| Family history of cardiovascular disease | 7.7 | 7.5 | 7.5 | 7.7 | 7.6 | 7.7 |
| History of depression | 6.0 | 7.4 | 6.0 | 6.6 | 5.9 | 7.4 |
| History of rotating night shiftwork | 51.7 | 52.6 | 51.4 | 52.6 | 51.6 | 53.8 |
| Husbands’ educational level | ||||||
| Less than high school | 1.4 | 2.1 | 1.3 | 1.8 | 1.3 | 2.3 |
| Some high school | 3.0 | 3.7 | 2.9 | 3.6 | 2.8 | 4.2 |
| High school graduate | 31.0 | 32.8 | 30.4 | 32.4 | 30.6 | 33.9 |
| College | 24.0 | 21.6 | 23.9 | 23.1 | 24.2 | 21.4 |
| Graduate school | 20.4 | 17.1 | 20.5 | 18.8 | 20.6 | 16.3 |
| Meal frequency h | ||||||
| 1–2 times/day | 3.7 | 5.8 | 4.2 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 5.5 |
| 3–4 times/day | 65.8 | 62.0 | 65.5 | 64.4 | 65.9 | 62.2 |
| 5 or more times/day | 30.5 | 32.2 | 30.3 | 31.7 | 30.1 | 32.3 |
| Breakfast consumption h | ||||||
| 0–2 times/week | 7.4 | 12.9 | 8.0 | 9.0 | 7.6 | 13.0 |
| 3–5 times/week | 9.4 | 13.1 | 9.7 | 10.9 | 9.3 | 13.5 |
| 6–7 times/week | 83.2 | 74.0 | 82.3 | 80.2 | 83.1 | 73.6 |
Abbreviations: NHS, Nurses’ Health Study; SD, standard deviation; BMI, body mass index; kg, kilogram; m, meter; cigs, cigarettes; g, gram; MET, metabolic equivalent task; AHEI, alternate healthy eating index; EDIH, empirical dietary index for hyperinsulinemia; NSAIDs, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs; kcal, kilocalorie, ug, microgram; mg, milligram; IU, international unit.
Data are expressed as percentages unless otherwise indicated.
Percentages are of non-missing values.
Percentages may not sum to 100% after rounding.
Calculated as weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared.
Implementing a 4-year lag-time.
Cumulative among smokers.
Weekly energy expenditure in MET-hours/week from recreational and leisure time physical activity.
Assessed in 2002.
Defined as those exhibiting dietary restraint, i.e. those who reported both “not having the behavior of eating anything at any time” and “paying a great deal of attention to changes in their figure”.