Table 1.
Baseline characteristics of study participants according to baseline sex-specific tertiles of CQI.
| Total | Tertiles of CQI | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T1 (low) |
T2 (medium) |
T3 (high) |
p-value | ||
| Mean (SD) | Mean (SD) | Mean (SD) | Mean (SD) | ||
| n | 1476 | 550 | 501 | 425 | |
| Socio-demographic factors | |||||
| Women, n (%) | 701 (47.5) | 291 (52.9) | 187 (37.3) | 223 (52.5) | <0.001 |
| Age (years) | 65.3 (5.0) | 65.5 (5.1) | 64.8 (5.1) | 65.7 (4.6) | 0.019 |
| Higher education, n (%) | 319 (21.6) | 107 (19.5) | 108 (21.6) | 104 (24.5) | 0.029 |
| Married, n (%) | 1125 (76.2) | 420 (76.4) | 380 (75.9) | 325 (76.5) | 0.971 |
| Current smokers, n (%) | 187 (12.7) | 92 (16.7) | 56 (11.2) | 39 (9.2) | <0.001 |
| Lifestyle factors | |||||
| Total energy intake (kcal/day) | 2384 (532) | 2323 (516) | 2432 (555) | 2406 (518) | 0.003 |
| Carbohydrate intake (% of energy intake) | 39.9 (6.4) | 40.0 (6.9) | 40.1 (6.3) | 39.5 (5.7) | 0.338 |
| Protein intake (% of energy intake) | 16.5 (2.7) | 16.3 (2.6) | 16.4 (2.7) | 17.0 (2.7) | <0.001 |
| Fat intake (% of energy intake) | 40.4 (6.0) | 40.0 (6.3) | 40.1 (6.1) | 41.1 (5.6) | 0.008 |
| Polyunsaturated FA (% of energy intake) | 6.8 (1.9) | 6.5 (1.8) | 6.8 (1.8) | 7.2 (1.9) | <0.001 |
| Monounsaturated FA (% of energy intake) | 21.1 (4.2) | 20.9 (4.3) | 20.9 (4.3) | 21.7 (4.0) | 0.002 |
| Saturated FA (% of energy intake) | 10.1 (2.0) | 10.2 (2.1) | 10.1 (2.0) | 10.0 (1.8) | 0.155 |
| Trans FA (% of energy intake) | 0.23 (0.13) | 0.25 (0.14) | 0.23 (0.12) | 0.21 (0.12) | <0.001 |
| Alcohol intake (g/day) | 11.5 (15.3) | 12.9 (18.8) | 12.4 (15.5) | 8.7 (12.3) | <0.001 |
| Solid carbohydrates (g/day) | 215 (65) | 205 (63) | 222 (71) | 220 (59) | <0.001 |
| Liquid carbohydrates (g/day) | 23.8 (16.7) | 27.9 (17.4) | 24.0 (17.4) | 18.2 (12.9) | <0.001 |
| Ratio of solid carbohydrate/total carbohydrate | 0.89 (0.06) | 0.88 (0.07) | 0.90 (0.06) | 0.92 (0.05) | <0.001 |
| Refined carbohydrates (g/day) | 85.5 (56.4) | 108.0 (51.1) | 92.1 (57.8) | 48.6 (40.8) | <0.001 |
| Wholegrain carbohydrates (g/day) | 24.8 (34.4) | 2.9 (8.1) | 20.7 (26.4) | 57.9 (38.5) | <0.001 |
| Ratio of wholegrain/total grain | 0.25 (0.30) | 0.03 (0.10) | 0.22 (0.26) | 0.56 (0.26) | <0.001 |
| Fiber intake (g/day) | 25.7 (8.2) | 20.3 (5.4) | 25.7 (6.6) | 32.7 (7.7) | <0.001 |
| Glycemic index | 54.2 (5.4) | 56.4 (4.6) | 54.2 (4.8) | 51.5 (5.6) | <0.001 |
| CQI (index range 4 to 20) | 11.8 (3.4) | 8.3 (1.6) | 12.0 (1.3) | 15.9 (1.4) | <0.001 |
| Adherence to erMedDiet (17p score) | 8.35 (2.6) | 7.36 (2.3) | 8.30 (2.5) | 9.7 (2.6) | <0.001 |
| UPF consumption (% of total intake g/day) | 8.45 (7.65) | 9.26 (8.34) | 8.53 (7.82) | 7.31 (6.29) | 0.0004 |
| Physical activity (METs min/week) | 2677 (2313) | 2315 (1955) | 2896 (2529) | 2889 (2419) | <0.001 |
| Sedentary behavior (h/day) | 5.9 (1.8) | 5.9 (1.9) | 6.0 (1.8) | 5.7 (1.8) | 0.052 |
| Health-related factors | |||||
| Weight (kg) | 86.3 (12.7) | 85.5 (12.7) | 87.9 (13.1) | 85.4 (12.2) | 0.002 |
| Height (cm) | 162.7 (9.4) | 161.9 (9.8) | 164.4 (9.2) | 161.9 (8.8) | <0.001 |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 32.5 (3.3) | 32.6 (3.3) | 32.5 (3.3) | 32.5 (3.3) | 0.900 |
| Overall obesity prevalence, n (%) | 1105 (74.9) | 419 (76.2) | 368 (73.5) | 318 (74.8) | 0.595 |
| History of overweight from childhood, n (%) | 103 (7.0) | 41 (7.5) | 37 (7.4) | 25 (5.9) | 0.011 |
| WC (cm) | 107.3 (9.2) | 107.1 (8.8) | 108.0 (9.7) | 106.7 (9.1) | 0.069 |
| Abdominal obesity prevalence, n (%) | 1378 (93.4) | 516 (93.8) | 471 (94.0) | 391 (92.0) | 0.407 |
| Visceral fat (g) | 2307 (888) | 2326 (903) | 2390 (891) | 2184 (854) | 0.002 |
| Android-to-gynoid fat ratio | 0.79 (0.2) | 0.78 (0.2) | 0.81 (0.2) | 0.78 (0.2) | 0.019 |
| Total fat mass (%) | 40.4 (6.9) | 41.2 (6.8) | 39.3 (6.8) | 40.8 (6.9) | <0.001 |
| Total lean mass (%) | 56.5 (6.6) | 55.8 (6.5) | 57.6 (6.5) | 56.1 (6.6) | <0.001 |
| Type 2 diabetes prevalence, n (%) | 386 (26.2) | 133 (24.2) | 128 (25.6) | 125 (29.4) | 0.170 |
| Number of MetS factors | 3.63 (0.75) | 3.66 (0.75) | 3.60 (0.73) | 3.62 (0.76) | 0.429 |
Abbreviations: BMI – body mass index; CQI – carbohydrate quality index; erMedDiet – energy-restricted Mediterranean Diet; FA – fatty acids; MetS – Metabolic syndrome; METs – metabolic equivalents of tasks; UPF – ultra-processed foods; WC – waist circumference.
Values shown are mean (SD) unless otherwise specified. Ratio of solid carbohydrate/total carbohydrate was calculated as solid carbohydrates/(solid carbohydrates +liquid carbohydrates); ratio of wholegrain/total grain carbohydrate was calculated as wholegrains/(wholegrains + refined grains or their products). Overall obesity was defined as body mass index ≥ 30.0 kg/m2, and abdominal obesity as waist circumference ≥ 88 cm in women or ≥ 102 cm in men. Total lean and total fat mass were expressed as percentages of DXA-derived total body mass (sum of total bone, fat and muscle mass (g)). Current type 2 diabetes was defined as previous diagnosis of diabetes, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) ≥ 6.5%, use of antidiabetic medication, or having fasting glucose > 126 mg/dL in both the screening and baseline visit.
Sex-specific ranges for tertiles of CQI: men – T1: 4–9, T2: 10–13, and T3: 14–20; women – T1: 4–11, T2: 12–14, and T3: 15–20.
P-values for comparisons between baseline tertiles of CQI were calculated by one-way ANOVA test for continuous variables and χ2 test for categorical variables.