Fig. 1

Associations between dietary adherence and all-cause mortality, total CVD, and fatal CVD risks (n = 115,051). Abbreviations: CVD (cardiovascular disease), HR (hazard ratio), and CI (confidence intervals). Adjusted HRs, 95%CI, and p values were estimated through multivariable Cox-proportional hazards models. Models included age as the underlying timescale, were stratified by sex, and adjusted for ethnicity (Whites, others, unknown), region (England, Scotland, Wales), Townsend index of deprivation (quintiles 1–5 or unknown, with lower scores representing greater affluence), education group (vocational qualifications [NVQ, HND, HNC], any school degree [A-level, AS-level, O-level, GCSE, CSE], higher degree [college, university, of professional degree/qualification], none of the above, unknown), smoking status (never, previous, current, unknown), physical activity (continuous, total MET-hours/week), alcohol consumption (none, occasional < 1 unit/week, moderate 1–14 units/week, heavy > 14 units/week, unknown), menopausal status (yes, no, not applicable [men]), and log-transformed total daily energy