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Quality of plant-based diet and the risk of dementia and depression among middle-aged and older population
Wu H, Gu Y, Meng G, Wu H, Zhang S, Wang X, Zhang J, Huang T et al.. Age and ageing, 2023-05-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Background several previous studies have shown the importance of the plant-based diets. However, not all plant-based foods are necessarily beneficial for dementia or depression. This study aimed to prospectively investigate the association between an overall plant-based diet and the incidence of dementia or depression.
Key findings
- However, not all plant-based foods are necessarily beneficial for dementia or depression.
- This study aimed to prospectively investigate the association between an overall plant-based diet and the incidence of dementia or depression.
- Methods we included 180,532 participants from the UK Biobank cohort study, free of a history of cardiovascular disease, cancer, dementia and depression at baseline.
- We calculated an overall plant-based diet index (PDI), a healthful plant-based diet index (hPDI) and an unhealthful plant-based diet index (uPDI) based on 17 major food groups from Oxford WebQ.
Why it matters
This study examined whether overall plant-based diet quality is linked to dementia and depression in UK Biobank participants. It notes that not all plant-based foods are necessarily beneficial for dementia or depression.
Study details
- Study designcohort study
- Participants180,532
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 63/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a cohort study following people over time. Scored zero for effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Age and ageing) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Age and Ageing: journal h-index 231 (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 | 2023 — within 6 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 4 / 4 | 180,532 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 60 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 12.0 citations a year over 5 year(s) since 2023 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 14.0× 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 | 3 / 4 | Cited 58 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Kaijun Niu: h-index 52 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Peking University: institution h-index 1,098 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 4 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 37247402) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 63 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
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. 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
Wu, H., Gu, Y., Meng, G., Zhang, S., Wang, X., Zhang, J., et al. (2023). Quality of plant-based diet and the risk of dementia and depression among middle-aged and older population. Age and ageing. https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afad070
Vancouver
Wu H, Gu Y, Meng G, Zhang S, Wang X, Zhang J, et al. Quality of plant-based diet and the risk of dementia and depression among middle-aged and older population. Age and ageing. 2023. doi:10.1093/ageing/afad070. PMID: 37247402.
BibTeX
@article{wu2023-37247402,
author = {Wu, H. and Gu, Y. and Meng, G. and Zhang, S. and Wang, X. and Zhang, J. and Huang, T. and others},
title = {{Quality of plant-based diet and the risk of dementia and depression among middle-aged and older population}},
journal = {Age and ageing},
year = {2023},
doi = {10.1093/ageing/afad070},
pmid = {37247402},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afad070}
}
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