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Association of Ultraprocessed Food Consumption With Risk of Dementia: A Prospective Cohort Study
Li H, Li S, Yang H, Zhang Y, Zhang S, Ma Y, et al.. Neurology, 2022-07-27
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Background and objectives There has been a growing body of evidence associating consumption of ultraprocessed foods (UPF) with adverse health outcomes including depression, cardiovascular disease, and all-cause mortality. However, whether UPF are associated with dementia is unknown. The authors investigated the associations between UPF and dementia incidence in the UK Biobank. Methods We included 72,083 participants (55 years or older) who were free from dementia at baseline and provided at least 2 times 24-hour dietary assessments from the UK Biobank study. Follow-up occurred through March 2021. UPF were defined according to the NOVA classification. Incident all-cause dementia comprising Alzheimer disease (AD) and vascular dementia was ascertained through electronic linkages to hospital and mortality records. Cox proportional hazards were used to estimate the association between the proportion (%) of UPF in the diet and the subsequent risk of dementia. In addition, substitution analysis was used to estimate the risk of dementia when substituting UPF with an equivalent proportion of unprocessed or minimally processed foods. Results During a total of 717,333 person-years of follow-up (median 10.0 years), 518 participants developed dementia, of whom 287 developed AD and 119 developed vascular dementia. In the fully adjusted model, consumption of UPF was associated with higher risk of dementia (hazard ratio [HR] for 10% increase in UPF 1.25; 95% CI 1.14-1.37), AD (HR 1.14; 95% CI 1.00-1.30), and vascular dementia (HR 1.28; 95% CI 1.06-1.55), respectively. In addition, replacing 10% of UPF weight in diet with an equivalent proportion of unprocessed or minimally processed foods was estimated to be associated with a 19% lower risk of dementia (HR 0.81; 95% CI 0.74-0.89). Discussion In this prospective cohort study, higher consumption of UPF was associated with higher risk of dementia, whereas substituting unprocessed or minimally processed foods for UPF was associated with lower risk of dementia.
Key findings
- However, whether UPF are associated with dementia is unknown.
- Results During a total of 717,333 person-years of follow-up (median 10.0 years), 518 participants developed dementia, of whom 287 developed AD and 119 developed vascular dementia.
- In the fully adjusted model, consumption of UPF was associated with higher risk of dementia (hazard ratio [HR] for 10% increase in UPF 1.25; 95% CI 1.14-1.37), AD (HR 1.14; 95% CI 1.00-1.30), and vascular dementia (HR 1.28; 95% CI 1.06-1.55), respectively.
- In addition, replacing 10% of UPF weight in diet with an equivalent proportion of unprocessed or minimally processed foods was estimated to be associated with a 19% lower risk of dementia (HR 0.81; 95% CI 0.74-0.89).
- Discussion In this prospective cohort study, higher consumption of UPF was associated with higher risk of dementia, whereas substituting unprocessed or minimally processed foods for UPF was associated with lower risk of dementia.
Why it matters
This UK Biobank cohort found that higher consumption of ultraprocessed foods was linked to higher dementia risk. As an observational study, it shows an association and cannot prove that these foods cause dementia.
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Study details
- Study designcohort
- Participants72,083
- Effect sizeHR 1.25 per 10% increase in ultra-processed food share (95% CI 1.14-1.37)
- Evidence strengthModerate
Limitations
Observational; NOVA classification from 24-hour recalls; relatively few dementia cases; UK Biobank volunteers are healthier than average.
How this study scored 70/100
Published in a leading specialty journal, and it is a cohort study following people over time. Scored zero for randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on free to read, so that was left out: it earned 69 of the 98 points we could judge it on, which is 70 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Neurology: journal h-index 525 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 7 / 12 | A cohort study following people over time |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 3 / 5 | 2022 — within 6 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 4 / 4 | 72,083 participants |
| Effect reported | 3 / 3 | Effect reported with a statistic (interval, p-value, ratio or similar) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 105 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 17.5 citations a year over 6 year(s) since 2022 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 16.9× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 6 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 74 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Yaogang Wang: h-index 45 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Lund University: institution h-index 1,119 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 36219796) |
| Free to read | — / 2 | Access not recorded — left out of this score |
| Points | 69 / 98 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 69 of the 98 points we could judge it on is 70 out of 100. |
| Total | 70 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
May need a subscription Unpaywall, Europe PMC and OpenAlex found no free copy of the full text (checked 10 Oct 2026), so the publisher may charge for it. The PubMed abstract is free.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Li, H., Li, S., Yang, H., Zhang, Y., Zhang, S., Ma, Y., et al. (2022). Association of Ultraprocessed Food Consumption With Risk of Dementia: A Prospective Cohort Study. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/WNL.0000000000200871
Vancouver
Li H, Li S, Yang H, Zhang Y, Zhang S, Ma Y, et al. Association of Ultraprocessed Food Consumption With Risk of Dementia: A Prospective Cohort Study. Neurology. 2022. doi:10.1212/WNL.0000000000200871. PMID: 36219796.
BibTeX
@article{li2022-36219796,
author = {Li, H. and Li, S. and Yang, H. and Zhang, Y. and Zhang, S. and Ma, Y. and others},
title = {{Association of Ultraprocessed Food Consumption With Risk of Dementia: A Prospective Cohort Study}},
journal = {Neurology},
year = {2022},
doi = {10.1212/WNL.0000000000200871},
pmid = {36219796},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1212/WNL.0000000000200871}
}
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