Table 1 Characteristics of the UK Biobank cohort*
Parameters | Total cohort (n = 186,622) | FS intake (%E) split by quintiles | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
0.0 to 6.8 (n = 37,325) | 6.8 to 9.5 (n = 37,324) | 9.5 to 12.1 (n = 37,324) | 12.1 to 15.5 (n = 37,324) | 15.5 to 77.5 (n = 37,325) | |||
Characteristics | |||||||
 Age at completion of first Oxford WebQ (years) | 58 (8) | 58 (8) | 58 (8) | 58 (8) | 58 (8) | 57 (8) | |
 BMI (kg/m2) | 26.6 (4.3) | 26.8 (4.4) | 26.6 (4.3) | 26.4 (4.2) | 26.4 (4.3) | 26.6 (4.4) | |
 Ethnic background | |||||||
  - White | 179,879 (96.4) | 36,088 (96.7) | 36,251 (97.1) | 36,162 (96.9) | 36,101 (96.7) | 35,277 (94.5) | |
  - Mixed, Asian, Black, Chinese, and other | 6,743 (3.6) | 1,237 (3.3) | 1,073 (2.9) | 1,162 (3.1) | 1,223 (3.3) | 2,048 (5.5) | |
 General health status | |||||||
  - Poor | 4,515 (2.4) | 814 (2.2) | 697 (1.9) | 725 (1.9) | 873 (2.3) | 1,406 (3.8) | |
  - Fair | 29,894 (16.0) | 5,985 (16.0) | 5,544 (14.9) | 5,499 (14.7) | 5,877 (15.7) | 6,989 (18.7) | |
  - Good | 113,190 (60.7) | 22,613 (60.6) | 22,707 (60.9) | 23,043 (61.7) | 22,838 (61.2) | 21,989 (58.9) | |
  - Excellent | 39,023 (20.9) | 7,913 (21.2) | 8,376 (22.4) | 8,057 (21.6) | 7,736 (20.7) | 6,941 (18.6) | |
 Highest qualification | |||||||
  - None of the below | 14,984 (8.0) | 3,307 (8.9) | 2,788 (7.5) | 2,800 (7.5) | 2,818 (7.6) | 3,271 (8.8) | |
  - National exams at age 16 years | 28,062 (15.0) | 5,699 (15.3) | 5,352 (14.3) | 5,450 (14.6) | 5,509 (14.8) | 6,052 (16.2) | |
  - Vocational qualifications or optional national exams at ages 17–18 years | 33,058 (17.7) | 6,771 (18.1) | 6,440 (17.3) | 6,377 (17.1) | 6,381 (17.1) | 7,089 (19.0) | |
  - Professional | 28,977 (15.5) | 5,543 (14.9) | 5,625 (15.1) | 5,930 (15.9) | 5,934 (15.9) | 5,945 (15.9) | |
  - College or University | 81,541 (43.7) | 16,005 (42.9) | 17,119 (45.9) | 16,767 (44.9) | 16,682 (44.7) | 14,968 (40.1) | |
History of mental illnesses | 12,278 (6.6) | 2,413 (6.5) | 2,288 (6.1) | 2,222 (6.0) | 2,409 (6.5) | 2,946 (7.9) | |
Physical activity (MET-min/week) | 4,130 (2,651) | 4,069 (2,663) | 4,112 (2,572) | 4,133 (2,559) | 4,142 (2,598) | 4,194 (2,852) | |
SBP (mmHg) | 139 (19) | 139 (20) | 139 (19) | 139 (19) | 138 (19) | 138 (19) | |
Sex – female | 106,834 (57.3) | 21,447 (57.5) | 21,731 (58.2) | 21,512 (57.6) | 21,380 (57.3) | 20,764 (55.6) | |
 Smoking status | |||||||
  - Never | 107,357 (57.5) | 19,187 (51.4) | 20,906 (56.0) | 21,870 (58.6) | 22,713 (60.9) | 22,681 (60.8) | |
  - Previous | 65,874 (35.3) | 15,128 (40.5) | 13,972 (37.4) | 13,146 (35.2) | 12,165 (32.6) | 11,463 (30.7) | |
  - Occasional | 4,461 (2.4) | 1,065 (2.9) | 912 (2.4) | 849 (2.3) | 810 (2.2) | 825 (2.2) | |
  - Current < 10 cigarettes per day | 2,313 (1.2) | 491 (1.3) | 415 (1.1) | 385 (1.0) | 476 (1.3) | 546 (1.5) | |
  - Current 10 to 14 cigarettes per day | 2,011 (1.1) | 410 (1.1) | 349 (0.9) | 332 (0.9) | 361 (1.0) | 559 (1.5) | |
  - Current 15 to 19 cigarettes per day | 1,787 (1.0) | 376 (1.0) | 302 (0.8) | 294 (0.8) | 323 (0.9) | 492 (1.3) | |
  - Current ≥ 20 cigarettes per day | 2,819 (1.5) | 668 (1.8) | 468 (1.3) | 448 (1.2) | 476 (1.3) | 759 (2.0) | |
 Total household income per year (k£) | |||||||
  - < 18 | 24,987 (13.4) | 4,730 (12.7) | 4,582 (12.3) | 4,692 (12.6) | 5,101 (13.7) | 5,882 (15.8) | |
  - 18 to < 31 | 40,795 (21.9) | 7,767 (20.8) | 7,956 (21.3) | 8,176 (21.9) | 8,333 (22.3) | 8,563 (22.9) | |
  - 31 to < 52 | 48,423 (26.0) | 9,591 (25.7) | 9,806 (26.3) | 9,779 (26.2) | 9,669 (25.9) | 9,578 (25.7) | |
  - 52 to < 100 | 41,708 (22.4) | 9,877 (23.8) | 8,751 (23.4) | 8,469 (22.7) | 8,179 (21.9) | 7,432 (19.9) | |
  - ≥ 100 | 12,437 (6.7) | 2,857 (7.7) | 2,735 (7.3) | 2,537 (6.8) | 2,345 (6.3) | 1,963 (5.3) | |
  - Unknown | 18,272 (9.8) | 3,503 (9.4) | 3,494 (9.4) | 3,671 (9.8) | 3,697 (9.9) | 3,907 (10.5) | |
  Townsend deprivation index | -1.6 (2.8) | -1.5 (2.9) | -1.7 (2.8) | -1.7 (2.8) | -1.8 (2.8) | -1.5 (2.9) | |
Dietary sugar subtype intake in %E | |||||||
 Carbohydrates | 48.6 (7.8) | 44.4 (8.9) | 46.8 (7.3) | 48.4 (6.7) | 50.1 (6.3) | 53.5 (6.6) | |
 Total sugars | 24.4 (7.2) | 18.8 (6.6) | 21.8 (5.6) | 23.9 (5.3) | 26.2 (5.2) | 31.1 (6.3) | |
 Intrinsic sugars | 13.0 (5.7) | 14.4 (6.4) | 13.6 (5.6) | 13.1 (5.3) | 12.5 (5.1) | 11.4 (5.3) | |
 FS | 11.4 (5.6) | 4.5 (1.7) | 8.2 (0.8) | 10.8 (0.7) | 13.7 (1.0) | 19.7 (4.3) | |
 FS beverages | 4.7 (4.7) | 1.1 (1.4) | 2.6 (2.1) | 3.9 (2.5) | 5.6 (3.1) | 10.5 (5.9) | |
  - Soda/fruit drinks | 1.6 (3.3) | 0.2 (0.6) | 0.5 (1.2) | 0.9 (1.7) | 1.6 (2.4) | 4.6 (5.4) | |
  - Juice | 2.1 (2.8) | 0.6 (1.2) | 1.4 (1.8) | 2.1 (2.2) | 2.7 (2.6) | 3.8 (4.0) | |
  - Milk-based drinks | 0.3 (0.9) | 0.1 (0.5) | 0.2 (0.7) | 0.3 (0.9) | 0.4 (1.0) | 0.6 (1.3) | |
  - Tea/coffee | 0.6 (1.6) | 0.2 (0.6) | 0.3 (1.0) | 0.5 (1.2) | 0.7 (1.6) | 1.4 (2.6) | |
 FS solids | 6.6 (3.5) | 3.4 (1.8) | 5.6 (2.1) | 6.9 (2.5) | 8.1 (3.0) | 9.2 (4.1) | |
  - Treats | 4.4 (3.0) | 2.1 (1.6) | 3.6 (2.0) | 4.5 (2.4) | 5.3 (2.8) | 6.3 (3.8) | |
  - Cereals | 0.5 (0.8) | 0.3 (0.6) | 0.5 (0.7) | 0.5 (0.8) | 0.6 (0.8) | 0.6 (0.9) | |
  - Toppings | 1.2 (1.6) | 0.4 (0.9) | 0.9 (1.4) | 1.3 (1.6) | 1.6 (1.8) | 1.7 (2.0) | |
  - Sauces | 0.3 (0.4) | 0.2 (0.4) | 0.3 (0.4) | 0.3 (0.4) | 0.3 (0.4) | 0.3 (0.4) | |
Other nutrients of interest | |||||||
 Alcohol (g/d) | 17.3 (22.1) | 26.1 (28.5) | 20.2 (22.9) | 16.7 (19.7) | 13.7 (17.7) | 9.7 (15.5) | |
 Fat (g/d) | 79.3 (28.0) | 73.9 (27.4) | 79.6 (27.5) | 81.8 (27.8) | 82.3 (27.9) | 78.9 (28.5) | |
 Protein (g/d) | 74.7 (20.8) | 76.5 (22.6) | 76.7 (20.6) | 76.0 (19.9) | 74.4 (19.6) | 70.1 (20.1) | |
 Fibre (g/d) | 19.1 (7.0) | 19.3 (7.7) | 19.8 (7.1) | 19.6 (6.8) | 19.1 (6.6) | 17.5 (6.8) | |
 Energy (kJ/d) | 9,090 (2,309) | 8,532 (2,249) | 9,002 (2,236) | 9,223 (2,255) | 9,347 (2,290) | 9,347 (2,412) | |
Number of Oxford WebQ | 2.2 (1.2) | 2.0 (1.1) | 2.3 (1.2) | 2.4 (1.2) | 2.3 (1.2) | 2.0 (1.1) | |