| Males | Females | |
| Subjects | 1551 | 1391 |
| Age yrs | 65.7±2.9 | 66.6±2.7 |
| Height cm | 174.2±6.4 | 160.9±5.9 |
| Birth weight kg | 3.50±0.54 | 3.34±0.50 |
| Fat mass# kg | 23.0±1.4 | 27.8±1.3 |
| Habitual activity % | 61.0±15.3 | 59.1±15.7 |
| Energy intake# kcal·day−1 | 2237±1.3 | 1912±1.3 |
| Smoking status | ||
| Never smoked | 507 (32.7) | 854 (61.4) |
| Ex-smoker | 806 (52.0) | 402 (28.9) |
| Current smoker | 238 (15.3) | 134 (9.6) |
| Pack-years smoked | ||
| Ex-smoker | 19 (8–34) | 11 (3–23) |
| Current smoker | 36.5 (25–50) | 27 (15–40) |
| Exposed to tobacco smoke in the home | 203 (13.5) | 163 (11.9) |
| Alcohol consumption | ||
| Non-drinker | 86 (5.6) | 273 (19.6) |
| Exceeded recommended levels¶ | 336 (21.7) | 67 (4.8) |
| Social class | ||
| I-IIINM | 611 (40.6) | 583 (41.9) |
| IIIM-V | 896 (59.4) | 807 (58.1) |
| Father's social class | ||
| I-IIINM | 231 (15.8) | 215 (16.5) |
| IIIM-V | 1,228 (84.2) | 1,085 (83.5) |
| Rooms in household use | 5.6±1.6 | 5.5±1.5 |
| ≥2 cars available for household use | 635 (41.0) | 353 (25.4) |
| Owning or mortgaging their home | 1,260 (81.2) | 1,089 (78.3) |
| Left full-time education aged ≥15 yrs | 1,249 (80.5) | 1,150 (82.7) |
| Taking dietary supplements | 712 (45.9) | 824 (59.2) |
| Taking inhaled steroids | 93 (6.0) | 107 (7.7) |
| Taking oral steroids | 19 (1.2) | 26 (1.9) |
| Taking paracetamol | 105 (6.8) | 178 (12.8) |
| Maximum FEV1 L | 2.84±0.60 | 1.98±0.41 |
| Maximum FVC L | 4.04±0.74 | 2.71±0.50 |
| FEV1/FVC ratio | 0.70±0.09 | 0.73±0.08 |
| COPD+ | 334 (21.6) | 187 (13.5) |
Data are presented as n, n (%), mean±sd or median (interquartile range), unless otherwise stated. #: geometric mean (sd); ¶: recommended units of alcohol for males, 21 per week; for females, 14 per week; +: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is defined as forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1)/forced vital capacity (FVC) ratio less than the lower limit of normal.