Socio-demographic and occupational profiles of the study groups
| Background characteristics | Waste pickers | Control group |
|---|---|---|
| n=200 | n=213 | |
| Age, years | ||
| 18–30 | 48.0% | 33.3% |
| 31–40 | 30.5% | 40.4% |
| Above 40 | 21.5% | 26.3% |
| Mean age±SD | 34.0±10.2 | 36.5±9.8 |
| Education | ||
| Not literate | 69.5% | 40.9% |
| Up to 5 years of education | 19.5% | 17.8% |
| Above 5 years of education | 11.0% | 41.3% |
| Mean years of education±SD | 1.6±2.8 | 4.2±4.1 |
| Family size | ||
| Up to 4 members | 38.5% | 42.3% |
| 5–6 members | 37.5% | 40.9% |
| 7 or more members | 24.0% | 16.9% |
| Mean size of family±SD | 5.3±2.1 | 4.8±1.8 |
| Sex | ||
| Female | 42.5% | 15.9% |
| Male | 57.5% | 84.0% |
| Years of working | ||
| 1–4 | 16.5% | 17.4% |
| 5–10 | 37.0% | 36.6% |
| Above 10 | 46.5% | 46.0% |
| Mean number of years±SD | 11.1±6.7 | 11.5±7.7 |
| Weekly working hours | ||
| Up to 40 | 62.0% | 41.3% |
| Above 40 | 38.0% | 58.7% |
| Mean weekly hours±SD | 36.5±19.7 | 47.8±19.4 |