Characteristics of the study participants
| Total, n=2420 | South group, n=1516 | North group, n=904 | Unadjusted P value | Adjusted P value* | |
| Male, n (%) | 1147 (48.5) | 656 (44.8) | 491 (54.4) | <0.001 | – |
| Age, year | 54.5±13.8 | 57.0±13.7 | 50.5±13.0 | <0.001 | – |
| Cigarette smoker, n (%) | 619 (25.6) | 340 (22.4) | 279 (30.9) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| Mild–moderate alcohol drinker, n (%) | 510 (21.1) | 212 (14.0) | 298 (33.0) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| Alcohol consumption, g/week† | 48.0 (18.0–72.9) | 36.0 (5.2–84.0) | 54.0 (18.0–72.0) | 0.252 | 0.656 |
| Lifetime alcohol consumption,g† | 540.0 (67.2–1354.5) | 345.6 (24.0–1488.0) | 684.0 (176.4–1224.0) | 0.099 | 0.855 |
| Statins treatment, n (%) | 221 (9.1) | 116 (7.7) | 105 (11.6) | 0.001 | 0.002 |
| BMI, kg/m2 | 24.7±3.6 | 24.7±3.7 | 24.6±3.5 | 0.273 | 0.299 |
| WC, cm | 87.1±10.8 | 87.1±11.4 | 87.2±9.8 | 0.824 | 0.470 |
| SBP, mm Hg | 131.4±19.7 | 134.2±20.4 | 126.8±17.5 | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| DBP, mm Hg | 80.2±17.5 | 80.1±20.3 | 80.3±11.3 | 0.741 | 0.759 |
| FBG, mmol/L | 5.8 (5.1–7.5) | 5.8 (5.2–7.4) | 5.8 (5.1–7.6) | 0.743 | 0.123 |
| OGTT-2hBG, mmol/L | 9.8 (6.5–15.7) | 9.8 (6.3–15.6) | 9.8 (6.7–15.9) | 0.143 | 0.046 |
| Glucose metabolism | |||||
| NGT | 750 (31.0%) | 462 (30.5%) | 288 (31.9%) | 0.462 | 0.142 |
| IGR | 425 (17.6%) | 277 (18.3%) | 148 (16.4%) | ||
| T2DM | 1245 (51.4%) | 777 (51.3%) | 468 (51.8%) | ||
| TC, mmol/L | 4.9±1.2 | 4.9±1.2 | 4.9±1.3 | 0.973 | 0.348 |
| TG, mmol/L | 1.4 (1.0–2.2) | 1.4 (1.0–2.1) | 1.4 (1.0–2.3) | 0.632 | 0.271 |
| HDL-c, mmol/L | 1.3±0.4 | 1.3±0.4 | 1.3±0.4 | 0.679 | 0.823 |
| LDL-c, mmol/L | 2.8±0.9 | 2.9±0.9 | 2.8±0.9 | 0.018 | 0.242 |
| ALT, U/L | 16 (11–26) | 13 (9–20) | 23 (16–32) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| AST, U/L | 19 (13–25) | 16 (11–23) | 22 (17–29) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| GGT, U/L | 25 (16–45) | 22 (15–34) | 37 (20–65) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| UA, μmol/L | 299.8±95.7 | 301.1±88.8 | 297.6±106.2 | 0.387 | 0.344 |
| NAFLD, n(%) | 1050 (43.4%) | 545 (35.9%) | 505 (55.9%) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
| LFC, % | 12.3 (7.1–21.0) | 10.9 (6.6–19.4) | 14.4 (8.3–23.9) | <0.001 | <0.001 |
Data are in n (%), means±SD or median (25th–75th percentile), as appropriate.
*Adjusted for age and gender.
†Compared in 510 mild–moderate alcohol drinkers.
ALT, alanine aminotransferase; AST, aspartate aminotransferase; BMI, body mass index; DBP, diastolic blood pressure; FBG, fasting blood glucose; GGT, gamma-glutamyl transferase; HDL-c, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol; IGR, impaired glucose regulation; LDL-c, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol; LFC, liver fat content; NAFLD, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease; NGT, normal glucose tolerance; OGTT-2hBG, 2-hour postload blood glucose in oral glucose tolerance test; SBP, systolic blood pressure; TC, total cholesterol; T2DM, type 2 diabetes mellitus; TG, triglyceride; UA, uric acid; WC, waist circumference.