Comparison of the basic characteristics between the vegetarian and non-vegetarian groups.

BMI  =  body mass index, BP  =  blood pressure, HDL-C  =  high density lipoprotein-cholesterol, LDL-C  =  low density lipoprotein-cholesterol, T-Chol  =  total cholesterol, TG  =  triglyceride, HOMA-IR  =  homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance index, MNCEP MetS  =  modified national cholesterol education program criteria of the metabolic syndrome, IDF MetS  =  International Diabetes Federation criteria of the metabolic syndrome, and IFG ± DM  =  impaired fasting glucose ± diabetes mellitus, * diabetics were excluded. + The original numbers were shown despite log transformation before statistical tests.