General characteristics of participants in ECRHS II and ECRHS III with FFQ and lung function measures
| Variables (measured in 2002) | Countries | |||
| Germany | UK | Norway | Overall | |
| Subjects n | 244 | 124 | 312 | 680 |
| Mean±sd years of follow-up ECRHS II and III | 10.3±0.4 | 12.6±0.5 | 9.3±0.2 | 10.3±1.2 |
| Mean±sd age years | 44.2±7.0 | 43.3±6.2 | 43.6±6.5 | 43.8±6.6 |
| Males n (%) | 115 (47.1) | 54 (43.6) | 167 (53.5) | 336 (49.4) |
| Mean±sd height m | 1.71±0.1 | 1.68±0.1 | 1.73±0.1 | 1.71±0.1 |
| Mean±sd BMI kg·m−2 | 25.7±4.5 | 26.10±4.4 | 25.6±4.0 | 25.7±4.2 |
| Smoking# n (%) | ||||
| Never-smokers | 82 (33.8) | 74 (59.7) | 126 (41.6) | 282 (42.2) |
| Ex-smokers gave up before ECRHS II | 94 (38.9) | 36 (29.0) | 74 (24.4) | 204 (30.5) |
| Ex-smokers gave up after ECRHS II | 21 (8.7) | 7 (5.7) | 42 (13.9) | 70 (10.5) |
| Current smokers | 45 (18.6) | 7 (5.7) | 61 (20.1) | 113 (16.9) |
| Mean number of pack-years smoked up to ECRHS III¶ | 21.7 | 14.7 | 20.1 | 20.1 |
| Age when completed education years+ n (%) | ||||
| Before 18 | 112 (17.1) | |||
| 18–20 | 213 (32.7) | |||
| ≥21 | 327 (50.2) | |||
| FEV1 at baseline (mean z-score GLI) | 0.25 | 0.15 | −0.39 | −0.06 |
| FVC at baseline (mean z-score GLI) | 0.14 | 0.31 | −0.12 | 0.05 |
| Whole sample 10-year mean±sd change in FEV1 mL§ | −445.6±290.0 | |||
| Whole sample 10-year mean±sd change in FVC mL§ | −381.1±347.9 | |||
| Median (IQR) total fruit intake g·day−1 | 205.9 (116.4–347.0) | 289.8 (175.4–442.7) | 321.5 (191.7–502.6) | 278.5 (156.5–443.9) |
| Median (IQR) total vegetable intake g·day−1 | 69.6 (51.8–95.9) | 155.8 (107.9–225.4) | 180.4 (97.5–319.8) | 114.3 (69.7–213.3) |
| Median (IQR) vitamin A IU | 872.6 (570–1381) | 545.9 (375–844) | 482.4 (291–872) | 633.6 (376–113) |
| Median (IQR) vitamin C mg | 104.1 (76.5–145.5) | 225.2 (151.2–348.9) | 230.0 (148.6–340.8) | 170.8 (105.8–273.1) |
| Median (IQR) vitamin D µg | 3.4 ((2.3–4.8) | 2.7 (1.9–3.5) | 4.5 (3.3–6.4) | 3.7 (2.5–5.4) |
| Median (IQR) vitamin E µg | 8.7 (6.7–10.4) | 8.7 (6.3–11.0) | 13.6 (10.1–18.1) | 10.1 (7.4–14.4) |
| Median (IQR) total energy intake kcal | 2251 (1470–3069) | 2587 (1788–3386) | 2819 (1710–3918) | 2573 (1748–3421) |
ECRHS: European Community Respiratory Health Survey; FFQ: food frequency questionnaires; BMI: body mass index; FEV1: forced expiratory volume in 1 s; GLI: Global Lung Function Initiative; FVC: forced vital capacity; IQR: interquartile range. #: Smoking status was based on self-report in 2000 and 2013. Current smokers were defined as those who smoked in 2000 and 2013. Ex-smokers were split into two groups: those who had quit before baseline and those who quit between baseline and follow-up. Never-smokers reported no smoking at both instances. ¶: Estimated for ever-smokers. +: From 652 subjects with information on number of years of education who had lung function data in ECRHS II and III. §: Standardised to a 10-year interval period.