Table 1.
Main characteristics of the study population, as classified according to the characteristics of alcohol consumption.
| Men, N = 10 626 | Abstainers | Alcohol Consumers | Type of Alcohol Preferred | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wine | Beer | Cider or long drink | Spirits | Mixed | |||
| n (% of N) | 3046 (28.7) | 7580 (71.3) | 981 (9.2) | 3691 (34.7) | 144 (1.4) | 1426 (13.4) | 1338 (12.6) |
| Age, years, mean ± SD | 51.9 ± 14.1 | 49.0 ± 13.2 a | 53.2 ± 12.6 b,d | 45.5 ± 12.9 a,d | 46.2 ± 14.1 a,d | 54.0 ± 11.9 a,d | 50.5 ± 12.9 b |
| Alcohol consumption, g/day, mean ± SD | 0.0 ± 0.0 | 18.1 ± 19.4 | 14.0 ± 13.8 d | 18.8 ± 20.0 d | 11.0 ± 12.7 d | 18.1 ± 19.9 e | 19.9 ± 20.9 d |
| Average level of drinking, n (%) | |||||||
| moderate | N/A | 5815 (76.7) | 835 (85.1) d | 2755 (74.6) f | 128 (88.9) d | 1088 (76.3) | 1009 (75.4) |
| heavy | N/A | 1765 (23.3) | 146 (14.9) | 936 (25.4) | 16 (11.1) | 338 (23.7) | 329 (24.6) |
| Drinking pattern, n (%) | |||||||
| regular | N/A | 5025 (66.3) | 755 (77.0) d | 2334 (63.2) e | 116 (80.6) d | 896 (62.8) f | 924 (69.1) f |
| binge | N/A | 2555 (33.7) | 226 (23.0) | 1357 (36.8) | 28 (19.4) | 530 (37.2) | 414 (30.9) |
| BMI, mean ± SD | 27.4 ± 4.3 | 27.1 ± 4.0 b | 27.2 ± 3.9 | 26.7 ± 3.9 a,d | 26.9 ± 3.9 | 28.2 ± 4.5 a,d | 27.1 ± 3.6 c |
| Waist circumference, cm, mean ± SD | 96.4 ± 12.3 | 95.8 ± 11.5 c | 96.3 ± 11.2 | 94.4 ± 11.4 a,d | 94.5 ± 11.2 | 99.0 ± 12.3 a,d | 95.7 ± 10.5 |
| Smoking, cigarettes/day, mean ± SD | 4.1 ± 8.6 | 5.2 ± 9.1 a | 2.5 ± 6.3 a,d | 6.2 ± 9.7 a,d | 4.6 ± 10.0 | 5.5 ± 9.5 a,d | 3.9 ± 8.3 f |
| Coffee, cups/day, mean ± SD | 4.7 ± 3.5 | 4.6 ± 3.1 c | 4.0 ± 2.8 a,d | 4.8 ± 3.3 d | 4.5 ± 3.4 | 4.8 ± 3.2 d | 4.2 ± 2.8 a,e |
| Physical activity, number of exercises per week, mean ± SD |
2.5 ± 2.4 | 2.3 ± 2.1 b | 2.6 ± 2.0 e | 2.2 ± 2.0 a | 1.6 ± 1.8 c,f | 2.4 ± 2.4 | 2.4 ± 1.9 |
| Women, N = 11 806 | |||||||
| n (% of N) | 5174 (43.8) | 6632 (56.2) | 2278 (19.3) | 2197 (18.6) | 429 (3.6) | 600 (5.1) | 1128 (9.6) |
| Age, years, mean ± SD | 49.6 ± 14.1 | 46.9 ± 12.7 a | 49.9 ± 12.9 d | 43.4 ± 11.5 a,d | 43.8 ± 12.9 a,d | 49.9 ± 12.9 d | 47.5 ± 12.5 a |
| Alcohol consumption, g/day, mean ± SD | 0.0 ± 0.0 | 8.6 ± 9.1 | 8.1 ± 9.4 | 8.7 ± 8.9 | 5.7 ± 5.3 d | 8.5 ± 10.4 | 10.5 ± 8.7 d |
| Average level of drinking, n (%) | |||||||
| moderate | N/A | 5284 (79.7) | 1887 (82.8) e | 1715 (78.1) | 386 (90.0) d | 490 (81.7) | 806 (71.5) d |
| heavy | N/A | 1348 (20.3) | 391 (17.2) | 482 (21.9) | 43 (10.0) | 110 (18.3) | 322 (28.5) |
| Drinking pattern, n (%) | |||||||
| regular | N/A | 5873 (88.6) | 2073 (91.0) e | 1872 (85.2) d | 409 (95.3) d | 515 (85.8) f | 1004 (89.0) |
| binge | N/A | 759 (11.4) | 205 (9.0) | 325 (14.8) | 20 (4.7) | 85 (14.2) | 124 (11.0) |
| BMI, mean ± SD | 27.2 ± 5.5 | 26.0 ± 4.8 a | 26.1 ± 4.8 a | 25.6 ± 4.7 a,d | 26.4 ± 5.3 b | 27.0 ± 5.1 d | 26.1 ± 4.9 a |
| Waist circumference, cm, mean ± SD | 85.6 ± 13.7 | 83.2 ± 12.5 a | 83.5 ± 12.3 a | 82.3 ± 12.1 a,d | 82.9 ± 13.7 a | 85.8 ± 13.6 d | 83.2 ± 12.5 a |
| Smoking, cigarettes/day, mean ± SD | 1.8 ± 5.0 | 2.7 ± 6.0 a | 1.6 ± 4.5 d | 4.2 ± 7.1 a,d | 2.9 ± 6.5 a | 3.4 ± 7.3 a,e | 1.9 ± 4.8 d |
| Coffee, cups/day, mean ± SD | 3.7 ± 2.6 | 3.7 ± 2.4 | 3.3 ± 2.2 a,d | 4.1 ± 2.6 a,d | 3.8 ± 2.6 | 3.8 ± 2.6 | 3.6 ± 2.2 f |
| Physical activity, number of exercises per week, mean ± SD | 2.5 ± 2.1 | 2.5 ± 2.0 | 2.6 ± 2.1 | 2.4 ± 2.0 | 2.3 ± 1.8 | 2.3 ± 1.9 | 2.6 ± 1.8 f |
BMI, body mass index; N/A, not applicable; a p < 0.001 b p < 0.01 c p < 0.05 for comparisons between abstainers vs. alcohol drinkers, d p < 0.001 e p < 0.01 f p < 0.05 for alcohol consumers in general vs. subgroups preferring different types of alcoholic beverages.