Table 1 Personal dietary habits of the rural residents in the high- and low-EC incidence areas. The survey defines the tastes of the respondents by referring to the family members’ evaluations. The degree of saltiness was depended on the median sodium intake, that was slightly salty <1 g/day, moderately salty 1–3 g/day and very salty >3 g/day, respectively. The “eating speed” was described as “rapid”, which indicated finishing their meal in 10 minutes; “usual”, which indicated finishing their meal in “30 minutes”; or “slow”, which indicated finishing their meal in “1 hour or more”. The “food temperature” was described as “hot” (over 60 °C), “cold” (less than 5 °C), or “moderate temperature” (5 °C–60 °C).
Dietary habits | Yanting County of Sichuan Province (n = 920) | Qingzhen County of Guizhou Province (n = 313) | χ2 | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Salt taste preference | 1.523 | 0.823 | ||
Very salty | 157(17.1%) | 32(10.2%) | ||
Moderately salty | 375(40.8%) | 195(62.3%) | ||
Slightly salty | 388(42.2%) | 86(27.5%) | ||
Toughness of food | 6.496 | 0.370 | ||
Hard | 136(14.8%) | 16(5.1%) | ||
Moderate hardness | 414(45.0%) | 219(70.0%) | ||
Soft | 369(40.1%) | 78(24.9%) | ||
Speed of eating | 6.917 | 0.329 | ||
Rapid | 295(32.1%) | 76(24.3%) | ||
Usual | 395(42.9%) | 143(45.7%) | ||
Slow | 228(24.8%) | 94(30.0%) | ||
Temperature of food | ||||
Hot | 176(19.1%) | 18(5.8%) | 2.544 | 0.637 |
Moderate temperature | 612(66.5%) | 281(89.8%) | ||
Cold | 132(14.3%) | 14(4.5%) | ||
