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Better diet quality relates to larger brain tissue volumes: The Rotterdam Study
Croll PH, Voortman T, Ikram MA, Franco OH, Schoufour JD, Bos D, Vernooij MW.. Neurology, 2018-05-16
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Objective To investigate the relation of diet quality with structural brain tissue volumes and focal vascular lesions in a dementia-free population. Methods From the population-based Rotterdam Study, 4,447 participants underwent dietary assessment and brain MRI scanning between 2005 and 2015. We excluded participants with an implausible energy intake, prevalent dementia, or cortical infarcts, leaving 4,213 participants for the current analysis.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Croll, P. H., Voortman, T., Ikram, M. A., Franco, O. H., Schoufour, J. D., Bos, D., et al. (2018). Better diet quality relates to larger brain tissue volumes: The Rotterdam Study. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0000000000005691
Vancouver
Croll PH, Voortman T, Ikram MA, Franco OH, Schoufour JD, Bos D, et al. Better diet quality relates to larger brain tissue volumes: The Rotterdam Study. Neurology. 2018. doi:10.1212/wnl.0000000000005691. PMID: 29769374.
BibTeX
@article{croll2018-29769374,
author = {Croll, P. H. and Voortman, T. and Ikram, M. A. and Franco, O. H. and Schoufour, J. D. and Bos, D. and Vernooij, M. W.},
title = {{Better diet quality relates to larger brain tissue volumes: The Rotterdam Study}},
journal = {Neurology},
year = {2018},
doi = {10.1212/wnl.0000000000005691},
pmid = {29769374},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.0000000000005691}
}
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 names 7 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
Key findings
- Methods From the population-based Rotterdam Study, 4,447 participants underwent dietary assessment and brain MRI scanning between 2005 and 2015.
- We excluded participants with an implausible energy intake, prevalent dementia, or cortical infarcts, leaving 4,213 participants for the current analysis.
- A diet quality score (0-14) was calculated reflecting adherence to Dutch dietary guidelines.
- Brain MRI was performed to obtain information on brain tissue volumes, white matter lesion volume, lacunes, and cerebral microbleeds.
Why it matters
This study found that better diet quality was related to larger brain tissue volumes in dementia-free older adults. It does not show that improving diet prevents dementia, and the findings are from an observational study of brain structure.
Study details
- Study designlongitudinal study
- Participants4,447
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 61/100
Published in a leading specialty journal, and it is a longitudinal study following the same people over time. Scored zero for effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| 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 longitudinal study following the same 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 | 2 / 5 | 2018 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 3 / 4 | 4,447 participants |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| 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 | 4 / 7 | Cited 75 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 7.5 citations a year over 10 year(s) since 2018 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 6.2× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 5 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 28 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Meike Willemijn Vernooij: h-index 99 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Erasmus MC: institution h-index 1,321 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 2 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 29769374) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 61 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
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