Diet and stroke
The food you eat can help reduce the risk of having a stroke. This factsheet describes different food groups, such as cereals, oils and fats, fruits and vegetables and explains why and how they can protect against stroke. It also suggests ways you can change your own diet into a more healthy one, by choosing more of some foods and less of others.In the last few years a great deal of research has been carried out into the links between diet and health. Studies are now looking into the more specific links between stroke and diet.
A healthy diet is thought to reduce the risk of a number of diseases, including stroke, heart disease, diabetes and some cancers. Studies have shown that the best way to stay fit is to eat a diet high in fruit, vegetables and plant-based foods, but low in fat and salt.
Fruit and vegetables
A number of large-scale studies have repeatedly shown that people who eat plenty of fruit and vegetables have a lower risk of stroke. However, it is not yet known exactly why this should be, or which particular nutrients are responsible for the health benefits. Scientists are investigating a number of possibilities, and fruit and vegetables are known to contain a number of valuable nutrients, including antioxidants, fibre and folate (folic acid), which may be responsible for their protective effects.Antioxidant vitamins – vitamins C, E and beta carotene – help protect against damage to the body cells from harmful molecules called free radicals. Free radical damage is now implicated in a range of diseases, including stroke.
One group of vegetables that seem to be particularly protective against stroke are the cruciferous or cross-shaped vegetables – such as cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli and Brussel sprouts. They contain high levels of antioxidants, as do richly coloured fruits and vegetables, such as blackcurrants, kiwi fruit, oranges and red and green peppers, which also offer high protection against stroke.
Folic acid, a B-vitamin found in dark green vegetables like broccoli and spinach, also looks as if it might prove important in protecting against stroke. Research has shown that low levels of folic acid in the diet are linked to high levels of a blood chemical called Homocysteine in the body, which may in turn raise the risk of stroke.
Ideally, you should aim to eat at least five portions of fruit and vegetables a day. But even if you don’t eat five portions a day, increasing your fruit and vegetable intake by just one serving a day can lower your risk of stroke by around six per cent. Increasing your intake to five or six servings a day reduces your risk by around a third.
Wholegrain cereals
Whole grains are found in foods such as wholewheat bread, cereal or pasta, rye bread, brown rice, oats, couscous, barley and quinoa. According to research, three servings a day of wholegrain cereals can almost halve the risk of stroke.It is suspected this may be because cereals contain folic acid and are also rich in other B vitamins – such as vitamin B6 –, which help to lower levels of Homocysteine. Wholegrain cereals are also a valuable source of fibre, which can help protect against atherosclerosis (furring of the arteries).
