Baseline characteristics of the study participants according to presence of psychological distress at follow-up (n=3088)
| Psychological distress (GHQ-30 ≥5) | p Value | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Characteristics | No (n=2219) | Yes (n=869) | |
| Age (years), mean (SD) | 45.3 (15.2) | 44.7 (15.6) | 0.30 |
| Female, n (%) | 1250 (56.3) | 537 (61.8) | 0.006 |
| Simple reaction time, mean (SD) | 321.3 (102.7) | 336.9 (121.6) | 0.003 |
| Choice reaction time, mean (SD) | 642.6 (109.2) | 656.2 (114.0) | 0.002 |
| Manual social class, n (%) | 1223 (55.1) | 491 (56.1) | 0.49 |
| No qualifications, n (%) | 1046 (47.1) | 436 (50.2) | 0.13 |
| GHQ-30 score, median (IQR) | 1 (0–3) | 4 (1–9) | <0.001 |
| Neuroticism, mean (SD) | 7.68 (4.64) | 11.6 (4.82) | <0.001 |
| Ever smoked, n (%) | 1321 (59.5) | 556 (64.0) | 0.023 |
| Units of alcohol last week, median (IQR) | 3 (0–10) | 3 (0–10) | 0.39 |
| Fruit or vegetables eaten once or twice a week or less often, n (%) | 433 (19.5) | 193 (22.2) | 0.09 |
| No time spent on physical activity in last fortnight, n (%) | 1318 (59.4) | 513 (59.0) | 0.69 |
| Two or more chronic physical illnesses, n (%) | 616 (27.8) | 325 (37.4) | <0.001 |
GHQ, General Health Questionnaire.