Mean (±SD) or N (%)

Low health literacy (<18) (N = 623)

High health literacy (≥18) (N = 725)

Pa

Age (years)

66.4

(15.1)

66.5

(14.7)

Elderly participants (≥65 years old)

406

(65.2)

480

(66.2)

Sex (male)

299

(48.0)

314

(43.3)

Anthropometric measurements

Body mass index (BMI)

23.9

(3.6)

23.5

(3.3)

Atherosclerotic complications

Cardiovascular disease

27

(4.3)

22

(3.0)

Cerebrovascular disease

19

(3.0)

19

(2.6)

Hypertension-related factors

Systolic blood pressure (mmHg)

136.1

(17.6)

136.3

(17.8)

Diastolic blood pressure (mmHg)

75.4

(10.1)

76.0

(11.2)

Antihypertensive drug use (yes)

265

(42.5)

287

(39.6)

Lipid-related items

High-density lipoprotein cholesterol (mg/dL)

59.7

(15.2)

61.5

(16.2)

*

Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (mg/dL)

123.7

(30.4)

121.6

(29.5)

Triglycerides (mg/dL)

139.8

(94.2)

136.6

(83.1)

Antidyslipidemic drug use (yes)

96

(15.4)

115

(15.9)

Diabetes-related items

Hemoglobin A1c (%)

5.61

(0.57)

5.60

(0.59)

Antidiabetic drug use (yes)

18

(2.9)

28

(3.9)

Healthy lifestyle characteristics

Alcohol consumption (less than one drink per day)

511

(83.0)

599

(83.7)

Smoking behavior (non-smoker)

529

(84.9)

643

(88.8)

*

Exercise frequency (twice or more per week)

179

(28.8)

261

(36.2)

**

Body mass index (18.5 - 24.9)

403

(64.7)

459

(63.3)

Sleep duration (6 - 9 hours)

498

(80.1)

610

(84.5)

*

Breakfast (every morning)

579

(93.2)

682

(95.3)

Snack between meals (no)

546

(87.9)

636

(88.2)

Total number of healthy lifestyle items

5.2

(1.1)

5.4

(1.1)

Proportion of participants with 6 or 7 healthy lifestyle items

268

(43.5)

371

(52.3)

**

Health literacy

Seeking information from various sources

3.0

(1.0)

4.2

(0.5)

**

Extracting relevant information

2.7

(0.9)

4.1

(0.5)

**

Understanding and communicating the information

2.6

(1.0)

4.0

(0.6)

**

Considering the credibility of the information

2.7

(0.9)

3.9

(0.6)

**

Making decisions based on the information

2.7

(0.9)

3.9

(0.6)

**

Total score

13.6

(3.2)

20.0

(1.7)

**