The low consumption of vegetables combined with significantly duplication hypertension the risk of stroke, particularly when hypertension is not treated, which underlines the need for integrated strategies for the prevention of strokes in Western Africa, has reported a study.
In this new study, the researchers highlighted the critical role of dietary habits in the management of stroke risk, noting that increasing vegetable intake could contribute significantly to the prevention of stroke, especially among hypertensive populations.
The Stroke Research Research and Research Network (Siren), a multiple case control study conducted in 15 hospitals sites in Nigeria and Ghana, provided the data for the study. Published in the June edition of The International Journal of Stroke, he presented contributions from Osahon Asowata, Akinkunmi Okekunle, Mayowa Owolabi and others.
The siren study recruited 3,684 pairs of stroke cases, with an average age of 59 years. In particular, 76.6 percent of the participants were hypertensive and 62.8 percent consumed less than six portions of vegetables per week, considered a low intake.
The researchers evaluated the interaction between the low consumption of vegetables and hypertension with the stroke, classifying hypertension treatment as not treated, treated and controlled, or treated but not controlled.
Dietary consumption was measured only by the frequency of portions, without taking into account the size of the portion, food preparation variations or diet nutrient composition.
The study found that the low consumption of vegetables, in the presence of hypertension, increases the probabilities of stroke in more than ten times through an additive and synergistic interaction.
“Our findings are aligned with other studies that highlight the critical role of improper consumption of vegetables and hypertension in the development of stroke and cardiovascular disease (ECV). Hypertension remains the main risk factor for stroke, with a disproportionately high load among Africans, and pharmacological intervention remains essential.
“In addition, the adoption of dietary and lifestyle interventions could be promising within the care and personalized medicine approaches of solid care for the prevention of stroke, given the well -documented importance of the consumption of vegetables to mitigate the risk of ECV, even among hypertensive people.
“By illustrating how low vegetable intake and hypertension jointly increase the risk of stroke, our findings emphasize the need for integrated and complementary intervention strategies.”
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Previous investigations had reported that hypertensive people with low vegetable intake had a probability of 31.7 for stroke compared to those without these risk factors, indicating a significant interaction between low vegetable consumption and hypertension in the incidence of stroke.
The World Health Organization recommends consuming at least 400 grams (five portions) of fruits and vegetables daily for optimal health.
Vegetables are rich in potassium and magnesium, which help reduce blood pressure, an important stroke risk factor. Many vegetables also contain antioxidants and phytochemicals that reduce inflammation and oxidative stress, both linked to a higher risk of stroke.
In addition, high vegetable fiber intake is associated with improved cholesterol levels and better insulin sensitivity, further reducing the risk of stroke.
It has been shown that adhesion to diets such as the Mediterranean or Dash, which emphasizes the consumption of vegetables, reduces the incidence of stroke.
The stroke remains an important public health concern, being the second main cause of death and years of life adjusted for disability worldwide, since Africa has a disproportionate part of the global burden of stroke.
Multiple risk factors contribute to the growing incidence of stroke, and studies have established that both hypertension and vegetable consumption are strongly linked modifiable factors to the risk of stroke.
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