Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40752041›Full record

ArticleThe journal of nutrition, health & aging2025

Ultra-processed food intake and brain health in middle-aged and older adults.

Jiawei Gu, Linli Chen, Yujia Bao, Xueer Yang, Xuhua Chen, Zheshen Han, Yibin Zhou, Xiaobei Deng, Yuhua Li, Jinjun Ran

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PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in The journal of nutrition, health & aging, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Jiawei GuSchool of Public Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Linli ChenMinhang Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Shanghai, China.
Yujia BaoSchool of Public Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Xueer YangSchool of Public Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Xuhua ChenSchool of Public Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Zheshen HanSchool of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.
Yibin ZhouMinhang Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Shanghai, China.
Xiaobei DengSchool of Public Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Yuhua LiThe Third Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming, Yunnan, China. Electronic address: Lyh18087950100@outlook.com.
Jinjun RanSchool of Public Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China. Electronic address: jinjunr@sjtu.edu.cn.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveThe escalating burden of neurodegenerative diseases underscores the urgent need to identify modifiable dietary risks. Given the increasing prevalence of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) in modern diets and their links to various chronic diseases, this study investigates their associations with neurodegeneration and alterations in brain structure.

designA prospective cohort study. SETTING AND

participants58,423 participants aged 40-70 years from the UK Biobank cohort (enrolled from 2006 to 2010) were included to examine the associations between UPF intake and neurodegenerative diseases, with a subsample of 5,462 participants with neuroimaging data used to investigate associations with regional gray matter morphology, including volume, thickness, and surface area. MEASUREMENTS: UPF intake was quantified as the weight-based proportion of ultra-processed foods, calculated by dividing the total daily weight (g/day) of UPFs by the total weight of all food consumed, based on the Oxford WebQ dietary questionnaire. Cox proportional hazards models, fully adjusted for potential confounders, were employed to assess the associations between UPF intake and neurodegenerative diseases. Polygenic risk scores derived from genome-wide summary statistics to reflect genetic predisposition to neurodegenerative diseases, were used to perform subgroup analyses. Multiple linear regression models were used to examine the associations between UPF intake and brain gray matter phenotypes.

resultsOur results indicated that high UPF intake was associated with increased risks of incident dementia (hazard ratio [95% confidence interval] = 1.37 [1.08, 1.74]), Parkinson's disease (1.76 [1.22, 2.53]), and multiple sclerosis (2.38 [1.02, 5.55]), with stronger associations observed in participants with lower polygenic risk score. Moreover, high UPF intake corresponded to extensive gray matter compromise, including reduced subcortical volumes with right-hemispheric predominance, and widespread cortical deterioration in volume, thickness, and surface area.

conclusionsThese findings advance epidemiological evidence on the relationship between UPF intake and neurodegenerative outcomes, suggesting that dietary assessment may serve as a relevant consideration in population-level approaches to brain health promotion.

Indexed as

BrainDietFast FoodsNeurodegenerative DiseasesAdultAgedFemaleFood, ProcessedGray MatterHumansMaleMiddle AgedProportional Hazards ModelsProspective StudiesRisk FactorsUnited KingdomBrain healthBrain morphologyNeurodegenerative diseasesPolygenic risk scoreUltra-processed foods

Identifiers

PMID40752041
PMCPMC12789825

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.