Home › Research › Prevention trials
Nutritional and physical pathways from feeding difficulty to sarcopenia in Alzheimer’s dementia
Büşra Başar Gökcen, Elif Buse Canpolat, Ferenc Budán, Duygu Ağagündüz, Dávid Szép. Frontiers in Nutrition, 2026-01-12
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Results Individuals with Alzheimer’s dementia exhibited poorer nutritional status (EdFED: 8.0 vs. 2.0; NUFFE: 10.0 vs. 7.0; both p < 0.001) and lower adherence to the Mediterranean diet (6.0 vs. 7.0; p = 0.050). Logistic regression showed that higher EdFED (OR = 1.15; p < 0.001) and NUFFE (OR = 1.14; p = 0.002) scores were associated with a higher likelihood of dementia, while greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet was associated with a lower likelihood (OR = 0.82; p = 0.015). Moderated mediation analyses indicated that only the PFES model showed a significant moderated indirect effect (IMM = −0.251, 95% CI –0.407 to −0.110), whereas the NUFFE and MEDAS models did not (IMM = −0.137 and −0.009, CIs including zero).
Key findings
- Results Individuals with Alzheimer’s dementia exhibited poorer nutritional status (EdFED: 8.0 vs. 2.0; NUFFE: 10.0 vs. 7.0; both p < 0.001) and lower adherence to the Mediterranean diet (6.0 vs. 7.0; p = 0.050).
- Logistic regression showed that higher EdFED (OR = 1.15; p < 0.001) and NUFFE (OR = 1.14; p = 0.002) scores were associated with a higher likelihood of dementia, while greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet was associated with a lower likelihood (OR = 0.82; p = 0.015).
- Moderated mediation analyses indicated that only the PFES model showed a significant moderated indirect effect (IMM = −0.251, 95% CI –0.407 to −0.110), whereas the NUFFE and MEDAS models did not (IMM = −0.137 and −0.009, CIs including zero).
Why it matters
This study found that people with Alzheimer's dementia had poorer nutritional status and lower Mediterranean diet adherence than those without. It shows associations only, so it cannot prove that diet or feeding changes prevent or treat dementia.
New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Prevention →
Study details
- Participants60
- Effect size88.3%; 64.7%; OR = 1.15
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 42/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Frontiers in Nutrition) |
| Journal's citation record | 1 / 4 | Frontiers in Nutrition: journal h-index 147 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 1 / 4 | 60 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 | 1 / 7 | Cited 1 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 0 / 5 | 0.5 citations a year over 2 year(s) since 2026 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 4.2× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 1 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 1 / 4 | Last-listed author Dávid Szép: h-index 8 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 0 / 3 | University of Pecs: institution h-index 298 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 4 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 41601867) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 42 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1740327
- PubMed: 41601867
- Original source →
- Free full text: Frontiers in Nutrition →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
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. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Gökcen, B. B., Canpolat, E. B., Budán, F., Ağagündüz, D., & Szép, D. (2026). Nutritional and physical pathways from feeding difficulty to sarcopenia in Alzheimer’s dementia. Frontiers in Nutrition. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2025.1740327
Vancouver
Gökcen BB, Canpolat EB, Budán F, Ağagündüz D, Szép D. Nutritional and physical pathways from feeding difficulty to sarcopenia in Alzheimer’s dementia. Frontiers in Nutrition. 2026. doi:10.3389/fnut.2025.1740327. PMID: 41601867.
BibTeX
@article{gokcen2026-41601867,
author = {Gökcen, Büşra Başar and Canpolat, Elif Buse and Budán, Ferenc and Ağagündüz, Duygu and Szép, Dávid},
title = {{Nutritional and physical pathways from feeding difficulty to sarcopenia in Alzheimer’s dementia}},
journal = {Frontiers in Nutrition},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.3389/fnut.2025.1740327},
pmid = {41601867},
url = {https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2025.1740327}
}
Studies this one cites
Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here.
Related studies in Prevention trials
Also tagged “biobank”
1,084 studies in the library carry the topic tag “biobank”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 1,084 tagged studies.