Baseline characteristics of participants in the ELSA-Brasil cohort
| Characteristics | Population | ||
| Total N=14 238 (100%) | Female n=7693 (54%) | Male n=6545 (46%) | |
| Age (years), mean (SD) | 52 (9.0) | 51.9 (8.8) | 52.0 (9.3) |
| BMI (kg/m2), mean (SD) | 26.8±4.5 | 26.8±4.8 | 26.9±4.2 |
| Self-rated race/ethnicity, n (%) | |||
| White | 7471 (52.5) | 3991 (51.9) | 3480 (53.2) |
| Mixed (‘pardo’) | 4007 (28.1) | 2052 (26.7) | 1995 (29.9) |
| Black | 2248 (15.8) | 1352 (17.6) | 896 (13.7) |
| Asian | 363 (2.5) | 237 (3.1) | 126 (1.9) |
| Indigenous | 149 (1.1) | 61 (0.8) | 88 (1.3) |
| Level of education, n (%) | |||
| University degree | 7540 (53.0) | 4240 (55.1) | 3300 (50.4) |
| Complete high school | 4916 (34.5) | 2743 (35.7) | 2173 (33.2) |
| Complete elementary school | 953 (6.7) | 407 (5.3) | 546 (8.3) |
| Incomplete elementary school | 829 (5.8) | 303 (3.9) | 526 (8.0) |
| Smoking, n (%) | |||
| Never | 8146 (57.2) | 6021 (79.4) | 4723 (73.2) |
| Former | 4247 (29.8) | 1143 (15.1) | 1141 (17.7) |
| Current | 1844 (13.0) | 418 (5.5) | 587 (9.1) |
| Physical activity*, n (%) | |||
| Low | 10 744 (76.6) | 6021 (79.4) | 4723 (73.2) |
| Moderate | 2284 (16.3) | 1143 (15.1) | 1141 (17.7) |
| High | 1005 (7.1) | 418 (5.5) | 587 (9.1) |
| Alcohol consumption†, n (%) | |||
| None | 7354 (51.7) | 4893 (63.7) | 2461 (37.6) |
| Moderate | 5826 (40.9) | 2520 (32.8) | 3306 (50.5) |
| Excessive | 1048 (7.4) | 271 (3.5) | 777 (11.9) |
| Daily consumption of fruits, n (%) | 8135 (57.2) | 4992 (65.0) | 3143 (48.1) |
| Daily consumption of vegetables, n (%) | 7378 (51.9) | 4419 (57.5) | 2959 (45.3) |
| Diabetes‡, n (%) | 2378 (16.7) | 1079 (14.0) | 1299 (19.9) |
| Systolic pressure§ (mm Hg), mean (SD) | 121 (17.3) | 117 (16.8) | 125 (16.8) |
| CVD¶, n (%) | 668 (4.7) | 295 (3.8) | 373 (5.7) |
| History of cancer**, n (%) | 633 (4.4) | 371 (4.8) | 262 (4.0) |
| History of COPD††, n (%) | 279 (1.9) | 162 (2.1) | 117 (1.7) |
| hsCRP (mg/L), median (25%–75%) | 1.39 (0.70–3.02) | 1.54 (0.75–3.39) | 1.25 (0.66–2.55) |
Some characteristics do not total 100% due to loss of information.
*Physical activity based on the International Physical Activity Questionnaire.
†Excessive drinker (men ≥210 g alcohol/week; women ≥140 g alcohol/week).
‡Diabetes mellitus: defined according to the American Diabetes Association criteria or by self-report of previous diagnosis of diabetes mellitus and/or use of insulin or oral hypoglycaemic agents.
§Average blood pressure from three measurements.
¶CVD: defined based on the report of coronary revascularisation, or of a medical diagnosis of myocardial infarct and/or stroke and/or heart failure.
**Cancer: defined by self-report.
††COPD: defined by self-report.
BMI, body mass index; COPD, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; CVD, cardiovascular disease; hsCRP, high-sensitivity C reactive protein.