The habitual use of anti-hypertensive medicines was investigated and questions on the use of diuretics (hydrochlorotiazides, furosemide, spironolactone), beta-blockers, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEI) or angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), calcium channel antagonists (CCA), alpha-blockers, and clonidine were categorized as follows: no habitual consumption?=?0, habitual usage?=?1
The habitual use of anti-hypertensive medicines was investigated and questions on the use of diuretics (hydrochlorotiazides, furosemide, spironolactone), beta-blockers, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEI) or angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), calcium channel antagonists (CCA), alpha-blockers, and clonidine were categorized as follows: no habitual consumption?=?0, habitual usage?=?1. Measurements Height and body weight were measured with participants lightly dressed and without shoes (SECA); the body mass index (BMI) was determined as body weight (kg)/height2 (m2). acid levels and may contribute to irregular glucose tolerance. is the largest shopping center in Palermo, and customers come from all parts of the city, suburbs and neighboring areas. Data provided by the administration display that the characteristics of their habitual customers were heterogeneous in terms of gender (female 65%, male 35%), age (10C54?years 50%, 55?years 50%), place of residence (Palermo 62%, outside of Palermo 38%), education (college graduates?=?14%, high school graduates?=?37%, middle school?=?32%, primary school?=?17%), and employment status (housewife?=?40%, retired?=?23%, employed?=?19%, student?=?8%, unemployed?=?6%, manager/professional?=?4%). Inclusion criteria were age??18, and residence in the province of Palermo. Exclusion criteria were gastrointestinal or connective diseases, chronic pancreatitis, liver cirrhosis, use of nonsteroidal antiinflammatory medicines, corticosteroids, or medicines interfering with coagulation; pregnancy or lactation in the past 6?months. In order to encourage the participation of more youthful people without known cardiovascular, metabolic or nutritional diseases, an echographic check of the thyroid Vatalanib (PTK787) 2HCl was also proposed. There was no incentive offered to the participants. Participants were asked to present, in the morning, in over night fasting conditions, in the Biomedical Division of the Internal and Specialized Medicines Laboratory of Clinical Nourishment, at the University or college of Palermo, in the following weeks, and no later on than July 15th, 2011, to undergo blood sampling for assessment of blood chemistry and hormone ideals. A blood Mouse monoclonal to ACTA2 sample was freezing and stored at ?80C, and a sample was treated Vatalanib (PTK787) 2HCl and stored for subsequent measurements. Our institutional ethics committee in the Biomedic Division of Internal and Specialistic Medicine authorized the study protocol. Each participant authorized an approved educated consent form. Participants were given a questionnaire on demographic characteristics, the presence of chronic disease and pharmacologic treatment, physical activity, including items concerning the level of physical activity and its weekly rate of recurrence, daily time watching television, on the computer, and playing video games. Physical activity was classified as follows: none of them?=?no significant active physical activity (most of the time spent sitting at home or at work; light?=?short walks (including at work or at home, going for walks from place to place, and some other going for walks done for recreation, exercise, or leisure for 10C20?moments/day time.); moderate?=?sports activity, including fast going for walks or bicycling for 20?moments/day time 1C3 occasions a week; heavy?=?sports activity, including fast going for walks or bicycling for? ?20?moments/day time or Vatalanib (PTK787) 2HCl heavy work activities ?3 times a week). Half-quantitative habitual intakes of different foods during the past 12?weeks were assessed with the Food Rate of recurrence Questionnaire (FFQ) [22]. The requested info referred to the last year. Having a different analysis in the same cohort, using an approach, we applied a cluster analysis to identify diet patterns [23], a process that is based on the intercorrelations among food organizations or nutrients. A diet that may be defined as unhealthy was recognized, and was characterized, by high usage of soft drinks, fried foods, seed oils, cured meats, butter, red meat and sweets; a dietary pattern that resembled the Mediterranean diet, defined as healthy, was characterized by high intakes of fruit, milk and cheese, olive oil, vegetables, pasta and bread; a third pattern of diet habits was defined as intermediate, and experienced characteristics that were between the two other diet programs. Type 2 diabetes and pre-diabetes were defined according to the most recent consensus statements [24]. In particular, previously undiagnosed type 2 Vatalanib (PTK787) 2HCl diabetes was defined on the basis of a Vatalanib (PTK787) 2HCl fasting plasma glucose concentration of 125?mg/dl and/or random capillary blood glycemia 199?mg/dl and/or glycated hemoglobin 6.4%. Pre-diabetes was diagnosed when the fasting plasma glucose concentration was in the range 100C125?mg/dl and/or glycated hemoglobin between 5.7-6.4%. The habitual use of anti-hypertensive medicines was investigated and questions on the use of diuretics (hydrochlorotiazides, furosemide, spironolactone), beta-blockers, angiotensin transforming enzyme inhibitors (ACEI) or angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), calcium channel antagonists (CCA), alpha-blockers, and clonidine were categorized as follows: no habitual usage?=?0,.