Table 1 Baseline characteristics of the study population by quartiles of the total intake of red, processed meat, poultry and fish
|  | Q1 (< 65.12 g/day) | Q2 (65.12–95.00 g/day) | Q3 (95.01–150.80 g/day) | Q4 (> 150.80 g/day) | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Age (years), M (IQR) | 53 (49–59) | 52 (49–58) | 52 (48–57) | 52 (48–57) | 0.010 |
Gender, n (%) |  |  |  |  | < 0.001 |
 Male | 129 (39.7) | 223 (47.2) | 237 (59.4) | 263 (66.1) |  |
 Female | 196 (60.3) | 249 (52.8) | 162 (40.6) | 135 (33.9) |  |
NAFLD, n (%) | 84 (25.8) | 151 (32.0) | 136 (34.1) | 152 (38.2) | 0.005 |
Educational level, n (%) |  |  |  |  | < 0.001 |
 Primary school and less than | 71 (21.8) | 71 (15.0) | 40 (10.00) | 34 (8.5) |  |
 Junior middle and high school | 154 (47.4) | 228 (48.3) | 197 (49.4) | 209 (52.5) |  |
 Junior college or above | 100 (30.8) | 173 (36.7) | 162 (40.6) | 155 (38.9) |  |
Income (yuan/month), n (%) |  |  |  |  |  < 0.001 |
 < 2000 | 52 (16.0) | 36 (7.6) | 28 (7.0) | 24 (6.0) |  |
 2000–3000 | 131 (40.3) | 167 (35.4) | 121 (30.3) | 120 (30.2) |  |
 > 3000 | 142 (43.7) | 269 (57.0) | 250 (62.7) | 254 (63.8) |  |
Marital status, n (%) |  |  |  |  | < 0.001 |
 Married | 312 (96.0) | 469 (99.4) | 391 (98.0) | 397 (99.7) |  |
 Single or other | 13 (4.0) | 3 (0.6) | 8 (2.0) | 1 (0.3) |  |
Smoking status, n (%) |  |  |  |  | < 0.001 |
 Never | 264 (81.2) | 382 (80.9) | 283 (70.9) | 248 (62.3) |  |
 Former | 17 (5.2) | 20 (4.2) | 24 (6.0) | 34 (8.55) |  |
 Current | 44 (13.5) | 70 (14.8) | 92 (23.11) | 116 (29.1) |  |
Tea intake status, n (%) |  |  |  |  |  < 0.001 |
 No | 168 (51.7) | 218 (46.2) | 147 (36.8) | 136 (34.2) |  |
 Yes | 157 (48.3) | 254 (53.8) | 252 (63.2) | 262 (65.8) |  |
BMI (kg/m2), M (IQR) | 22.72 (21.06–24.98) | 23.60 (21.64–25.40) | 23.41 (21.48–25.64) | 24.10 (22.49–26.09) | < 0.001 |
Waist circumference (cm), M (IQR) | 83 (76–89) | 83 (77–90) | 85 (78–91) | 86 (80–92) | < 0.001 |
Hip circumference (cm), M (IQR) | 94 (91–98) | 95 (91–99) | 96 (92–99) | 97 (93–101) | < 0.001 |
SBP (mmHg), M (IQR) | 124 (112–140) | 120 (110–132) | 120 (110–131) | 122 (112–134) | 0.124 |
DBP (mmHg), M (IQR) | 80 (74–88) | 80 (77–88) | 80 (75–88) | 80 (76–90) | 0.317 |
Hypertension, n (%) | 132 (40.6) | 170 (36.0) | 148 (37.1) | 157 (39.4) | 0.528 |
Dyslipidemia, n (%) | 121 (37.2) | 165 (35.0) | 144 (36.1) | 162 (40.7) | 0.345 |
Diabetes, n (%) | 66 (20.3) | 96 (20.3) | 77 (19.3) | 74 (18.6) | 0.909 |
GGT (U/L), M (IQR) | 22 (17–33) | 24 (17–36) | 26 (18–39) | 28 (20–44) | < 0.001 |
ALT (U/L), M (IQR) | 19 (14–25) | 20 (15–27) | 21 (16–29) | 21 (16–30) | 0.001 |
AST (U/L), M (IQR) | 22 (19–26) | 22 (19–26) | 22 (19–26) | 23 (19–27) | 0.318 |
FPG (mg/dL), M (IQR) | 469.44 (441.98–513.73) | 467.67 (443.76–516.39) | 467.67 (438.44–505.76) | 469.44 (441.10–510.19) | 0.708 |
TC (mg/dL), M (IQR) | 460.58 (410.98–505.76) | 467.67 (416.30–513.73) | 465.90 (420.73–528.79) | 460.58 (420.73–523.47) | 0.328 |
TG ( mg/dL), M (IQR) | 119.57 (85.92–170.95) | 127.55 (91.23–174.49) | 126.66 (92.12–178.03) | 130.20 (93.00–183.35) | 0.354 |
LDL (mg/dL), M (IQR) | 293.18 (239.15–339.24) | 296.72 (248.89–344.55) | 293.18 (248.89–350.75) | 294.07 (239.15–336.58) | 0.610 |
HDL (mg/dL), M (IQR) | 116.92 (101.86–129.32) | 116.92 (100.97–129.32) | 116.92 (100.97–129.32) | 114.26 (98.32–127.55) | 0.124 |
Physical activity (hours/week), M (IQR) | 10.5 (4.5–17.5) | 9.5 (4.0–15.3) | 8.9 (4.1–15.0) | 7.0 (3.5–15.6) | 0.051 |