Lifestyle Affects Stroke Risk

About a month ago, we learned that lifestyle affects our mortality.  Earlier this month, we learned that lifestyle affects diabetes risk.  Two days ago, we learned that lifestyle affects erectile function.  Three days ago, we learned that eating white-fleshed fruits & vegetables is associated with a lower risk of stroke.  Well, timing is everything.  In a study published early online last week in the Archives of Internal Medicine, the authors noted a strong association between lifestyle and total, ischemic & hemorrhagic strokes.

Specifically, the authors followed 36,686 Finnish participants for over 13yrs as part of the World Health Organization (WHO) MONitoring trends and determinants of CArdiovascular disease (MONICA) study.  Five cross-sectional surveys were performed in 6 geographically distinct areas in 1982, 1987, 1992, 1997 & 2002.  While the participants were 25-65yo at the start of the study, the average age was actually in the 40s, such that younger participants (avg 41yo) engaged in more healthy lifestyles than older participants (avg 49yo).

The lifestyles analyzed were smoking, body mass index (BMI), physical activity, vegetable consumption & alcohol consumption.  The healthiest lifestyle consisted of never smoking, BMI <25kg/m2, moderate or high physical activity, vegetable consumption >3 times/wk, and alcohol consumption <210g/wk for men & <140g/wk for women.  Unhealthy lifestyles were the opposite of the above such that the factors were considered essentially dichotomous, with a minimum score of zero and maximum of 5.  

Regardless of the specific lifestyle, the greater the number of healthy ones, the lower one's risk for total, ischemic & hemorrhagic strokes.  Granted, those participants with the highest number of healthy lifestyles also had the lowest blood pressures, cholesterol & history of diabetes, and highest education, in a graded fashion.  They also tended to be younger.  But the association between lifestyle & stroke risk remained even after taking these variables into account.

The bottom line?  We truly control our health destiny.