Tier 4 — mechanistic

Association of dietary choline and betaine intake with all-cause mortality: a longitudinal study from the China Health and Nutrition Survey

Peishan Tan, Peiyan Chen, Shangling Wu, Jialin Lu, Jing Shu, Dan Li, Aiping Fang
The British journal of nutrition 2025 133(12):1543-1560

Bibliography

PubMed
PMID 40619843
Funding
Funding was not specified in the indexed record or accessible funding metadata.
Competing interests
A competing-interest declaration was not available in the indexed record or accessible disclosure metadata.

Study snapshot

DesignProspective cohort
ModelHuman participants
Sample17855 Chinese adults
InterventionHabitual dietary choline and/or betaine intake; no randomized TMG treatment
DurationMedian 9.1 years
EndpointsAll-cause mortality

What the study showed, in plain terms

Published in 2025, this source examined human observational and biomarker research. Design: Prospective cohort. Sample/model: 17855 Chinese adults. The exposure or intervention was Habitual dietary choline and/or betaine intake; no randomized TMG treatment. Follow-up or treatment period: Median 9.1 years.

Dietary betaine was not associated with all-cause mortality in either sex, despite associations for some choline measures.

Observational exposure analysis: residual confounding and reverse causation remain possible. Associations do not establish that betaine supplementation causes the same outcome.

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Key findings

  • Dietary betaine was not associated with all-cause mortality in either sex, despite associations for some choline measures.
  • The recorded outcome domains were All-cause mortality.
  • The exposure was observed rather than assigned as an isolated supplement treatment.

What this study can and cannot tell us

  • Observational exposure analysis: residual confounding and reverse causation remain possible. Associations do not establish that betaine supplementation causes the same outcome.
  • Confounding, dietary patterns, illness, medication use and reverse causation can influence an association. Blood or dietary concentrations do not identify the effect of starting a capsule.
  • Source basis: Indexed abstract and bibliographic data. Missing method details, funding information or participant denominators are not inferred.

Editorial review

Reviewed by the Biohack Blueprint research team

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