Table 6.
Association between dietary pattern and cardiovascular characteristics in the studied groups.
| Cardiovascular Characteristics | Women | Men | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omnivores | Flexitarians | Vegetarians | Omnivores | Flexitarians | Vegetarians | |
| Systolic blood pressure, mm Hg | 128.78 ± 20.8 * | 130.49 ± 22.3 * | 129.08 ± 18.7 | 136.15 ± 18.6 * | 138.93 ± 20.9 * | 129.0 ± 10.8 |
| Diastolic blood pressure, mm Hg | 80.38 ± 11.4 * | 81.34 ± 11.9 * | 82.25 ± 10.0 | 82.82 ± 11.4 * | 83.30 ± 12.3 * | 81.06 ± 8.8 |
| Current smoking, n (%) | 1399 (21.5) * | 146 (23.3) * | 4 (36.4) | 2005 (34.6) * | 128 (36.6) * | 1 (11.1) |
| Physical activity, n (%) | ||||||
| 4–7 times/week | 1975 (30.3) * | 184 (29.2) | 1 (8.3) * | 1934 (33.4) * | 119 (33.8) | 4 (44.4) * |
| 2–3 times/week | 886 (13.6) * | 90 (14.3) | 1 (8.3) * | 824 (14.2) * | 38 (10.8) | 3 (33.3) * |
| Less or no PA | 3654 (56.1) * | 356 (56.5) | 10 (83.4) * | 3039 (52.4) * | 195 (55.4) | 2 (22.3) * |
| Body mass index, kg/m2 | 26.5 ± 5.7 * | 26.6 ± 5.7 | 21.9 ± 3.1 a,b | 26.9 ± 4.5 * | 26.8 ± 4.9 | 25.2 ± 4.5 |
| Waist circumference, cm | 86.8 ± 14.1 * | 87.1 ± 14.3 * | 76.0 ± 5.9 a,b,* | 96.0 ± 12.3 * | 96.2 ± 12.7 * | 91.3 ± 9.8 * |
| Glucose, mmol/L | 5.13 ± 1.4 * | 5.06 ± 1.3 * | 4.29 ± 0.5 a,b | 5.35 ± 1.5 * | 5.32 ± 1.3 * | 4.77 ± 0.5 |
| Total cholesterol, mmol/L | 5.32 ± 1.2 | 5.27 ± 1.2 | 4.65 ± 1.5 | 5.32 ± 1.2 | 5.33 ± 1.3 | 5.32 ± 1.2 |
| LDL-C, mmol/L | 3.17 ± 1.0 * | 3.12 ± 1.1 | 2.68 ± 1.2 | 3.21 ± 1.0 * | 3.22 ± 1.1 | 3.05 ± 1.0 |
| HDL-C, mmol/L | 1.54 ± 0.4 * | 1.56 ± 0.4 * | 1.47 ± 0.5 | 1.35 ± 0.5 * | 1.36 ± 0.5 * | 1.37 ± 0.4 |
| Triglycerides, mmol/L | 1.35 ± 0.9 * | 1.28 ± 0.6 * | 1.08 ± 0.3 * | 1.71 ± 1.6 * | 1.63 ± 1.1 * | 1.94 ± 1.1 * |
| Obesity, n (%) | 1560 (23.9) * | 162 (25.7) | 0 | 1244 (21.5) * | 79 (22.4) | 1 (11.1) |
| Hypertension, n (%) | 1725 (26.5) * | 189 (30.0) * | 2 (16.7) | 2113 (36.5) * | 151 (42.9) * | 1 (11.1) |
| Hypercholesterolemia, n (%) | 3384 (51.9) * | 316 (50.2) | 5 (41.7) | 3118 (53.8) * | 187 (53.1) | 5 (55.5) |
| Diabetes, n (%) | 465 (7.1) * | 41 (6.5) | 0 | 471 (8.1) * | 27 (7.7) | 0 (0.0) |
Data presented as means ± SD unless otherwise stated. Abbreviations: LDL-C—low-density lipoproteins; HDL-C—high-density lipoproteins. Post hoc analysis: a statistically significant difference between omnivores and vegetarians; b statistically significant difference between flexitarians and vegetarians; * statistically significant difference between women and men.