THURSDAY, Aug. 14 (HealthDay News) -- A low-risk lifestyle is associated not only with a reduced risk of several chronic diseases -- such as coronary heart disease, diabetes and total cardiovascular disease -- but also with the prevention of stroke, according to the results of a study published online Aug. 12 in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.
Stephanie E. Chiuve, of the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, and colleagues studied 43,685 men from the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study and 71,243 women from the Nurses' Health Study. They defined low-risk lifestyle as not smoking, a body mass index less than 25 kg/m2, at least 30 minutes a day of moderate activity, modest alcohol consumption and scoring within the top 40 percent of a healthy diet score.
During follow-up, the investigators documented 1,559 strokes among women and 994 among men. Women with all five low-risk factors had a relative risk of 0.21 for total stroke and 0.19 for ischemic stroke compared with women who had none of the low-risk factors. Making the same comparison among men, the relative risks were 0.31 for total stroke and 0.20 for ischemic stroke, the report indicates. Among women, 47 percent of total and 54 percent of ischemic stroke cases were attributable to lack of adherence to low-risk lifestyle; for men the figures were 35 percent and 52 percent, respectively.
"This study further supports the beneficial impact of a low-risk lifestyle on the primary prevention of chronic disease and long-term well-being," the authors write.
Abstract
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
