Different Foods Linked to Different Types of Stroke: Study

Different types of food are associated with risks of different types of stroke, reports a new study. The findings of the study are published in the European Heart Journal. Until now, most studies have looked at the association between food and total stroke (all types of stroke combined), or focused on ischaemic stroke only. However, the current study of more than 418,000 people in nine European countries investigated ischaemic stroke and hemorrhagic stroke separately.

The study found that while higher intakes of fruit, vegetables, fiber, milk, cheese, or yogurt were each linked to a lower risk of ischaemic stroke, there was no significant association with a lower risk of hemorrhagic stroke. However, a greater consumption of eggs was associated with a higher risk of hemorrhagic stroke, but not with ischaemic stroke.

Ischaemic stroke occurs when a blood clot blocks an artery supplying blood to the brain or forms somewhere else in the body and travels to the brain where it blocks blood flow. Hemorrhagic stroke occurs when there is bleeding in the brain that damages nearby cells.

Dr. Tammy Tong, the first author of the paper and a nutritional epidemiologist at the Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford (UK), said: "The most important finding is that higher consumption of both dietary fiber and fruit and vegetables was strongly associated with lower risks of ischaemic stroke, which supports current European guidelines. The general public should be recommended to increase their fiber and fruit and vegetable consumption if they are not already meeting these guidelines.

"Our study also highlights the importance of examining stroke subtypes separately, as the dietary associations differ for ischaemic and hemorrhagic stroke, and is consistent with other evidence, which shows that other risk factors, such as cholesterol levels or obesity, also influence the two-stroke subtypes differently."

The total amount of fiber (including fiber from fruit, vegetables, cereal, legumes, nuts, and seeds) that people ate was associated with the greatest potential reduction in the risk of ischaemic stroke. Every 10g more intake of fiber a day was associated with a 23% lower risk, which is equivalent to around two fewer cases per 1000 of the population over ten years.

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Fruit and vegetables alone were associated with a 13% lower risk for every 200g eaten a day, which is equivalent to one less case per 1000 of the population over ten years. No foods were linked to a statistically significant higher risk of ischaemic stroke.

Based on UK estimates, two thick slices of wholemeal toast provide 6.6g of fiber, a portion of broccoli (around eight florets) provides about 3g, and a medium raw, unpeeled apple provides about 1.2g of fiber. The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe recommend consuming at least 400g of fruit and vegetables a day; the ESC also suggests people should consume 30-45g of fiber a day.

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The researchers found that for every extra 20g of eggs consumed a day; there was a 25% higher risk of hemorrhagic stroke, equivalent to 0.66 extra cases per 1000 (or around two cases per 3000) of the population over ten years. An average large-sized egg weighs approximately 60g. Egg consumption in the EPIC study was low overall, with an average of less than 20g eaten a day.

The researchers say the associations they found between different foods and ischaemic and hemorrhagic stroke might be explained partly by the effects on blood pressure and cholesterol.

Dr. Tong and her colleagues analyzed data from 418,329 men and women in nine countries (Denmark, Germany, Greece, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom) who were recruited to the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study between 1992 and 2000. The participants completed questionnaires asking about diet, lifestyle, medical history, and socio-demographic factors, and were followed up for an average of 12.7 years. During this time, there were 4281 cases of ischaemic stroke and 1430 cases of hemorrhagic stroke.

Food groups studied included meat and meat products (red meat, processed meat, and poultry), fish and fish products (white fish and fatty fish), dairy products (including milk, yogurt, cheese), eggs, cereals, and cereal products, fruit and vegetables (combined and separately), legumes, nuts and seeds, and dietary fiber (total fiber and cereal, fruit and vegetable fiber).

The major strengths of the study include the large numbers of people studied in several different countries and a long follow-up period. Most types of food were included in the study, although information on diet was collected at only one point in time when the participants joined the study. As the study is observational, it cannot show that the foods studied cause an increase or decrease in risk of ischaemic or hemorrhagic stroke, only that they are associated with different risks. Information on medication use (including statins) was not available.

Source-Eurekalert