Table 1 Baseline demographics of NHANES participants with MetS in different Mediterranean diet score groups

Number of subjects

8301

3705

1887

2709

Age, year

56.7 (56.2 ,57.3)

55.6 (54.9 ,56.4)

56.7 (55.6 ,57.8)

58.2 (57.5 ,59.0)

Female, %

55.1 (53.2 ,57.0)

56.4 (53.9 ,58.9)

53.6 (50.1 ,57.0)

54.4 (50.8 ,57.9)

Race (Mexico), %

7.9 (6.5 ,9.6)

6.2 (5.0 ,7.8)

9.1 (7.0 ,11.7)

9.5 (7.7 ,11.7)

Education (College Graduate or above), %

23.7 (21.6 ,25.9)

17.8 (15.3 ,20.7)

22.2 (19.1 ,25.6)

32.8 (29.9 ,35.8)

Marital status (Married), %

58.9 (56.8 ,61.0)

54.7 (52.1 ,57.2)

60.3 (56.4 ,64.1)

63.8 (60.1 ,67.3)

Poverty to income ratio

2.9 (2.9 ,3.0)

2.7 (2.5 ,2.8)

2.9 (2.8 ,3.1)

3.4 (3.2 ,3.5)

Waist, cm

112.2 (111.7 ,112.8)

113.0 (112.2 ,113.8)

112.0 (110.9 ,113.1)

111.4 (110.5 ,112.3)

BMI

33.9 (33.6 ,34.1)

34.2 (33.8 ,34.6)

33.8 (33.2 ,34.3)

33.5 (33.0 ,33.9)

SBP, mmHg

125.8 (124.5 ,127.1)

125.3 (123.7 ,126.9)

127.6 (125.9 ,129.2)

125.3 (123.2 ,127.4)

DBP, mmHg

70.9 (70.4 ,71.5)

70.5 (69.6 ,71.3)

71.9 (70.9 ,72.9)

70.9 (70.0 ,71.8)

Triglyceride, mmol/L

1.8 (1.8 ,1.9)

1.8 (1.8 ,1.9)

1.8 (1.7 ,1.9)

1.9 (1.8 ,2.0)

Triglyceride, mg/dL

163.2 (158.1 ,168.4)

163.6 (157.3 ,170.0)

158.1 (148.5 ,167.7)

166.2 (155.8 ,176.6)

HDL-C, mmol/L

1.2 (1.2 ,1.2)

1.2 (1.2 ,1.2)

1.2 (1.2 ,1.3)

1.2 (1.2 ,1.3)

HDL-C, mg/dL

46.9 (46.3 ,47.5)

45.8 (45.0 ,46.5)

47.3 (46.2 ,48.3)

48.2 (47.2 ,49.3)

Fasting Glucose, mmol/L

6.6 (6.5 ,6.7)

6.6 (6.5 ,6.8)

6.8 (6.5 ,7.1)

6.6 (6.4 ,6.7)

Fasting Glucose, mg/dL

119.8 (118.0 ,121.6)

119.3 (116.8 ,121.8)

122.5 (117.7 ,127.3)

118.5 (115.9 ,121.2)

Vegetables, cup

1.1 (1.0 ,1.1)

0.8 (0.7 ,0.8)

1.1 (1.1 ,1.2)

1.4 (1.4 ,1.5)

Fruits, cup

0.9 (0.9 ,1.0)

0.6 (0.5 ,0.6)

1.0 (0.9 ,1.1)

1.3 (1.3 ,1.4)

Grain, ounce

6.2 (6.1 ,6.3)

5.4 (5.2 ,5.6)

6.5 (6.2 ,6.7)

7.1 (6.9 ,7.4)

Meat, ounce

2.7 (2.6 ,2.8)

3.1 (2.9 ,3.2)

2.8 (2.6 ,3.0)

2.2 (2.0 ,2.3)

Legumes, ounce

0.6 (0.5 ,0.6)

0.2 (0.2 ,0.3)

0.6 (0.5 ,0.7)

1.0 (0.9 ,1.1)

Seafood, ounce

0.6 (0.6 ,0.7)

0.2 (0.2 ,0.3)

0.6 (0.6 ,0.7)

1.2 (1.1 ,1.3)

Nuts, ounce

0.7 (0.6 ,0.7)

0.3 (0.2 ,0.3)

0.7 (0.6 ,0.7)

1.2 (1.1 ,1.4)

MUFA/SFA

1.1 (1.1 ,1.1)

1.0 (1.0 ,1.0)

1.1 (1.1 ,1.1)

1.3 (1.2 ,1.3)

Alcohol, ounce

0.5 (0.4 ,0.5)

0.5 (0.4 ,0.6)

0.5 (0.4 ,0.6)

0.5 (0.4 ,0.6)

Alcohol, gram

6.8 (6.1 ,7.4)

6.8 (5.8 ,7.9)

6.6 (5.1 ,8.1)

6.9 (5.7 ,8.0)

Depression, %

10.3 (9.3 ,11.4)

12.3 (10.8 ,13.9)

10.4 (8.1 ,13.1)

7.6 (6.0 ,9.6)

Sedentary behavior, %

39.0 (37.3 ,40.8)

39.9 (37.4 ,42.5)

36.9 (33.2 ,40.7)

39.3 (36.6 ,42.1)

Physical activity, %

49.9 (47.9 ,51.8)

48.6 (45.8 ,51.3)

50.1 (45.9 ,54.2)

51.5 (48.3 ,54.8)

Work activity, %

35.7 (33.8 ,37.6)

36.7 (34.1 ,39.3)

36.7 (32.9 ,40.7)

33.6 (30.1 ,37.2)

Recreation activity, %

25.2 (23.5 ,26.9)

20.9 (18.7 ,23.1)

26.5 (23.5 ,29.9)

30.1 (27.4 ,33.1)