Next to female gender (β = −0.40) and increasing age (β: −0.003), lower education (+0.011 for medium/+0.20 for high education), smoking (−0.021), having a comorbidity (e.g. asthma: − 0.16; diabetes using insulin: −0.027) and/or a previous cardiovascular event (stroke: −0.56; myocardial infarct −0.29) and living in the southern region (−0.005) were negatively associated with EQ-5D index values (see Table 2). This evidence concerns the gene INS and diabetes mellitus.