Study: 90 Percent of Strokes Are Preventable

Avoiding a group of 10 controllable risk factors could help people worldwide ward off an amazing 90 percent of strokes, according to a study published July 15, 2016 in The Lancet. Researchers studied the health records of nearly 27,000 residents of nations around the world to determine the extent to which eliminating key risk factors might reduce the incidence of stroke.

They found that the most important stroke risk factor was high blood pressure. Successful management of high blood pressure with lifestyle changes and medication would likely reduce stroke risk by nearly 48 percent, the scientists calculated. Other modifiable risk factors, in order of importance, were: physical inactivity, 36 percent; unhealthy levels of lipids, or blood fats, such as cholesterol, 27 percent; poor diet, 23 percent; obesity, 19 percent; smoking, 12 percent; heart causes, 9 percent; alcohol use, 6 percent; stress, 6 percent; and diabetes, 4 percent.

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