Niacin lowers the risk of a stroke by an average of 26% according to a meta-analysis of eleven (11) studies which involved a total of 6545 people.

People using a sauna 4-7 times per week had a 61% lower risk of stroke during an average follow-up of 14.9 years compared to people using a sauna once per week according to a study from Finland.

Other studies have found that people using a sauna 4-7 times per week had a 40% lower risk of dying and a 65% lower risk of Alzheimer’s.

People consuming 3000 to 5000 mg of sodium per day plus a high potassium intake (greater than 4600 mg per day) had the lowest risk of death during an average follow-up of 8.2 years according to data from 103,5700 people from 18 countries.

Men who had both mumps and measles as a child were 13% less likely to die from an ischemic stroke (where you get a blood clot in the brain) during a 19-21 year follow-up than men who did not have either of these diseases according to a study of 43,689 men and 60,147 women aged 40-79 years at baseline.

Women who had both mumps and measles as a child were 19% less likely to die from an ischemic stroke (where you get a blood clot in the brain) during a 19-21 year follow-up than women who did not have either of these diseases according to a study of 43,689 men and 60,147 women aged 40-79 years at baseline.

Women consuming 2 or more artificially-sweetened beverages per day were 31% more likely to have an ischemic stroke (where there is an interruption in blood supply in the brain such as caused by a blood clot), 29% more likely to have coronary heart disease, and 16% more likely to die (all-cause mortality) during an 11.9 year follow-up according to a 2019 study.

Women consuming 2 or more artificially-sweetened beverages per day were 31% more likely to have an ischemic stroke (where there is an interruption in blood supply in the brain such as caused by a blood clot), 29% more likely to have coronary heart disease, and 16% more likely to die (all-cause mortality) during an 11.9 year follow-up according to a 2019 study.

Women consuming 2 or more artificially-sweetened beverages per day were 31% more likely to have an ischemic stroke (where there is an interruption in blood supply in the brain such as caused by a blood clot), 29% more likely to have coronary heart disease, and 16% more likely to die (all-cause mortality) during an 11.9 year follow-up according to a 2019 study.

Numerous studies have shown that people who consume more potassium have the following benefits:

• Lower risk of heart disease
• Lower risk of stroke
• Lower risk of cancer
• Lower risk of death.

The average U.S. adult consumes 2700 mg/day.

The National Academy of Sciences recommends we consume at least 4700 mg per day.

Below is evidence from several studies about the benefits of consuming more potassium.

The study found that people with low cholesterol levels — below 200 mg/dL — who had an ischemic stroke were 88% more likely to die over the next 5 years compared with people who had higher cholesterol levels — above 200 mg/dL.

To say this the other way, people who had an ischemic stroke who had higher cholesterol levels — above 200 mg/dL — were 47% less likely to die over the next 5 years than people with lower cholesterol levels — below 200 mg/dL.

Why would you ever give a statin or any other cholesterol-lowering drug to anyone who has had a stroke after seeing the results of this study?

Aspirin use lowers the risk of a cardiovascular event—heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular death—by 11% and increases the risk of a major bleed by 43% according to a new meta analysis in JAMA that analyzed 13 aspirin trials randomizing 164, 225 participants.

The one-third of people consuming the most extra virgin olive oil (2 ounces per day or 57 grams per day) were 35% less likely to die from cardiovascular disease (heart attack and stroke) during a 4.8 year follow-up compared to the one-third consuming the least (0.75 ounces or 21 grams per day) according to a study of 7,216 men and women at high cardiovascular risk, aged 55 to 80 years, from the PREDIMED study.

For every 2 teaspoon (10 gram) increase in extra virgin olive oil consumption per day was associated with a 10% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease (heart attack and stroke) during a 4.8 year follow-up according to a study of 7,216 men and women at high cardiovascular risk, aged 55 to 80 years, from the PREDIMED study.

A 400 mg increase in daily potassium intake was associated with a 40% reduction in the risk of stroke-associated death during a 12 year follow-up according to a 1987 study which followed 859 men and women, aged 50 to 79 years, in Southern California.

In the one-third (1/3) of people consuming the least amount of potassium, stroke mortality was

• 2.6 times higher in men and
• 4.8 times higher in women

compared to the two-thirds (2/3) of people consuming the most potassium.

(Unfortunately, I do not know the potassium intake of these groups because I do not have a copy of the paper.)

The one-fifth of people consuming the most potassium relative to sodium were 30% less likely to have an ischemic stroke (where a blood clot interrupts the blood supply in the brain) during a 24 year follow-up than the one-fifth of people consuming the least potassium relative to sodium.

The one-fifth of people consuming the most potassium relative to sodium were 37% less likely to have a hemorrhagic stroke (where a blood vessel in the brain bursts) during a 24 year follow-up than the one-fifth of people consuming the least potassium relative to sodium.

The one-fifth of people consuming the most potassium relative to sodium were 22% less likely to have cardiovascular disease during a 24 year follow-up than the one-fifth of people consuming the least potassium relative to sodium.

The one-fifth of people consuming the most potassium relative to sodium were 14% less likely to die from any cause during a 24 year follow-up than the one-fifth of people consuming the least potassium relative to sodium.

People consuming the most chocolate were 13% less likely to have a cerebral infarction (stroke), and 17% less likely to have a hemorrhagic stroke, according to data from six prospective studies.

The one-fourth of people with the highest intake of chocolate were 17% less likely to have a stroke over the next 10 years compared to the one-fourth of people who ate the least according to a study from Sweden.

A meta-analysis of 5 studies found similar results, that people consuming the most chocolate were 19% less likely to have a stroke (of any type) compared to people eating the least, the paper notes.

Compared with people who never or rarely ate eggs, people eating roughly one egg per day were 10% less likely to have an ischemic stroke according to a study looking at more than 500,000 people in China.

People who consumed artificially-sweetened beverages were 3-times more likely to have an ischemic stroke over the next ten (10) years compare to people who drank no artificially-sweetened beverages according to a study which followed 2888 people age greater than 45 years

Statin use among US adults increased by 68% from 1999 to 2005, from 8% of people surveyed to 13.4% of people surveyed.

How much do you think this reduced heart attacks, strokes and coronary heart disease?

Would you be surprised to learn that during this time that:

• Heart attacks increased by 16%!
  (from 3.4% to 3.7%)
• Strokes increased by 45%!
  (from 2.0% to 2.9%)
• Coronary heart disease increased by 32%!
  (from 2.8% to 3.7%)
• Type 2 diabetes increased by 32%!
  (from 7.8% to 10.3%)
• People with one or more of these conditions increased by 19%!
  (from 13.4% to 16%)

Do you believe that statins reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke and death?

I do not.

The results of the study mentioned above suggests the exact opposite.

As sugar intake increases, the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease (heart attack or stroke) increases according to a recent analysis by researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

During an average follow-up of 14.6 years, compared to the one-fifth of people consuming the least amount of added sugar:

• the one-fifth consuming the next most amount of sugar were 7% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease
• the one-fifth consuming the third highest amount of sugar were 18% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease
• the one-fifth consuming the second highest amount of sugar were 38% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease
• the one-fifth consuming the most amount of sugar were 103% more likely to die from cardiovascular disease (2X as likely to die from CVD)

This was after adjusting for age, sex, race/ethnicity as well as sociodemographic, behavioral, and clinical characteristics.

Women with normal blood pressure consuming the least amount of potassium—less than 1925 mg per day— were 32% more likely to have a stroke than women with normal blood pressure consuming more potassium than this after adjusting for multiple risk factors according to the 2014 Women’s Health Initiative Observational Study.

The risk of stroke in women with normal blood pressure was similar in each quarter of women consuming more potassium than this.

The second quarter of women with normal blood pressure who consumed 1925 to 2519 mg of potassium per day were 25% less likely to have a stroke during the 11 year follow-up than the one-quarter of women with normal blood pressure consuming the least potassium (less than 1925 mg per day).

The third quarter of women with normal blood pressure who consumed 2519 to 3194 mg of potassium per day were 25% less likely to have a stroke during the 11 year follow-up than the one-quarter of women with normal blood pressure consuming the least potassium (less than 1925 mg per day).

The quarter of women with normal blood pressure who consumed the most potassium—more than 3194 mg of potassium per day—were 21% less likely to have a stroke during the 11 year follow-up than the one-quarter of women with normal blood pressure consuming the least potassium (less than 1925 mg per day).

Increasing dietary magnesium intake by 100 mg per day is associated with a 7% reduction in the risk of stroke according to an analysis of 40 studies totaling more than one million people.

Every 3.5 ounces (100 grams) of alcohol per week increases risk of stroke by 14% according to an analysis of nearly 600,000 current drinkers in 83 studies.

Japanese men and women who skipped breakfast were 18% more likely to have a stroke over the next 15 years according to a study of 38,676 men and 44,096 women aged 45- to 74-years-old without a history of cardiovascular disease or cancer who were followed from 1995 to 2010.

One Tablespoon of butter per day is not associated with stroke according to a recent meta-analysis of previous studies by researchers from Tufts University and Stanford School of Medicine.

There was a 1% higher risk of stroke associated with consuming one Tablespoon of butter per day, but the difference was not statistically significant, meaning that this difference could have been due to random chance.

“This systematic review and meta-analysis suggests relatively small or neutral overall associations of butter with mortality, CVD [cardiovascular disease], and diabetes,” the paper concludes. “These findings do not support a need for major emphasis in dietary guidelines on either increasing or decreasing butter consumption, in comparison to other better established dietary priorities.”

Men who walked 30- 60 minutes per day (3-7 hours per week) had an 11% lower risk of stroke over the next 11 years compared to men who walked 0-30 minutes a day (0-3 hours per week) according to a new study.

“Time spent walking was associated with reduced risk of onset of stroke in dose-response fashion, independent of walking pace,” the authors of the study concluded. “Walking could form an important part of stroke-prevention strategies in older people.”

Men who walked 1-2 hours per day (8-14 hours per week) had a 37% lower risk of stroke over the next 11 years compared to men who walked 0-30 minutes a day (0-3 hours per week) according to a new study.

“Time spent walking was associated with reduced risk of onset of stroke in dose-response fashion, independent of walking pace,” the authors of the study concluded. “Walking could form an important part of stroke-prevention strategies in older people.”

Men who walked 3 hours or more per day (22 hours per week) had a 64% lower risk of stroke during an 11 year follow-up than men who walked 0-25 minutes per day (0-3 hours per week) according to a study from the United Kingdom.

“Time spent walking was associated with reduced risk of onset of stroke in dose-response fashion, independent of walking pace,” the authors of the study concluded. “Walking could form an important part of stroke-prevention strategies in older people.”

People consuming 3 or more servings of fruits and vegetables per day had a 27% lower risk of having a stroke and a 42% lower risk of dying from a stroke during an average follow-up of 19 years compared to people consuming less than one serving of fruit and vegetables per day.

This according to a study of 9608 adults aged 25- 74-years-old participating in the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Epidemiologic Follow-up Study and free of cardiovascular disease at the time of their baseline examination between 1971 and 1975.

The two-thirds of women consuming the most potassium—more than 1911 mg of potassium per day—were 79% less likely to die from stroke during a 12-year follow-up than the one-third of women consuming the least potassium—less than 1911 mg of potassium per day—according to a 1987 study which followed 859 men and women, aged 50 to 79 years, in Southern California.

To say this the other way, the one-third of women consuming the least potassium—less than 1911 mg per day—were 4.8 times more likely to die from stroke than the two-thirds of women consuming the most potassium.

The two-thirds of men consuming the most potassium were 62% less likely to die from stroke during a 12-year follow-up than the one-third of men consuming the least potassium—less than 1911 mg of potassium per day—according to a 1987 study which followed 859 men and women, aged 50 to 79 years, in Southern California.

To say this the other way, the one-third of men consuming the least potassium were 2.6 times more likely to die from stroke than the two-thirds of men consuming the most potassium.

The one-fourth of men with the lowest plasma vitamin C levels were 2.1 times more likely to have a stroke during a 10.4 year follow-up compared to the one-fourth of men with the highest vitamin C levels according to a study from Finland which followed 2419 middle-aged men, 42- to 60-years-old, with no history of stroke at baseline.

This was after adjusting for body mass index, systolic blood pressure, smoking, alcohol consumption, serum total cholesterol, diabetes, and exercise-induced myocardial ischemia.

Low vitamin C in hypertensive men and overweight men and risk of stroke: 2.4X greater risk and 2.7X greater risk

Comparing the one-fourth of men with the lowest serum vitamin C levels versus the one-fourth with the highest levels, the risk of stroke was 2.4 times higher in hypertensive men and 2.7 times higher in overweight men.

Consuming 3500 mg of potassium per day is associated with the lowest risk of stroke (risk of total, hemorrhagic, and ischemic stroke)—13% lower risk than those consuming the least potassium after adjusting for blood pressure—according to a meta-analysis of 16 studies.

Higher compared to lower chocolate consumption was associated with a 25% lower risk of heart attack and stroke according to a meta-analysis of two (2) studies.

Higher compared to lower chocolate consumption was associated with a 21% lower risk of stroke according to a meta-analysis of five (5) studies.

People over the age of 65 taking mirtazapine (Remeron) or venlafaxine (Effexor), referred to as “other antidepressants”, were 1.4 times more likely to have an ischemic stroke (where a blood clot interrupts the flow of blood) or transient ischemic attack during the study period compared to when antidepressants were not being used according to a 2011 study from the U.K.