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Big Surprise: Air Pollution Is The Leading Risk Factor for Stroke
You should have known that 74% of the stroke burden is linked to behavioral risk factors like poor diet and too less exercise. What you didn’t know is that up to 34% is linked to air pollution. This are the surprising news of a new study published in The Lancet.
The good news right at the start: 90% of the global burden of stroke is linked to modifiable risk factors. Meaning:
We can change these risk factors and prevent strokes. Up to 75% of strokes are preventable!
The Study
The study investigated the global burden of stroke and 17 risk factors worldwide (188 countries) from 1990-2013. The researchers focused on the burden of stroke. Thus they didn’t only count the number of strokes but also how massive the impact on the daily life of stroke sufferers is. To evaluate this the researchers measured DALYs (stroke-related disability-adjusted life-years)
The Findings
• 90% of the global burden of stroke is linked to modifiable risk factors
• 74% of the global burden of stroke is linked to behavioral risk factors
• 30% of the global burden of stroke is linked to air pollution. In developing countries up to 33.7%, in developed countries 10.2%.
Top 10 risk factors for stroke worldwide
1. high blood pressure
2. diet low in fruit
3. high body mass index (BMI)
4. diet high in sodium
5. smoking
6. diet low in vegetables
7. environmental air pollution
8. household pollution from solid fuels
9. diet low in whole grains
10. high blood sugar
Top 5 risk factors for stroke by country
UK & USA
1. high blood pressure
2. high BMI
3. diet low in fruit
4. diet low in vegetables
5. smoking
India
1. high blood pressure
2. diet low in fruit
3. household air pollution
4. diet low in vegetables
5. diet high in sodium
China
1. high blood pressure
2. diet low in fruit
3. diet high in sodium
4. smoking
5. environmental air pollution
The Conclusion
“A striking finding of our study is the unexpectedly high proportion of stroke burden attributable to environmental air pollution, especially in developing countries. Smoking, poor diet and low physical activity are some of the major risk factors for stroke worldwide, suggesting that stroke is largely a disease caused by lifestyle risk factors. Controlling these risk factors could prevent about three-quarters of strokes worldwide.” says lead author Professor Valery L Feigin, of Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand.
Stroke, Cerebrovascular Accident | All the facts | GNC Dubai
The most effective treatment of a stroke is prevention. To evaluate the risk a neurologist can perform a ECD (Extracranial Duplex ) and….
References: Lancet, NeuroscienceNews
