Stroke Prevention

Videos

Best Foods to Prevent Stroke

What Not to Eat for Stroke Prevention

3 potassium-rich foods that help prevent stroke

4 daily rituals that can cut your risk of stroke

How to Prevent a Stroke

Steps to Preventing Stoke

How to Avoid a Silent Stoke

A diet high in fruit and veg is linked to lower stroke risk

Articles/Studies

• Association between intakes of magnesium, potassium, and calcium and risk of stroke: 2 cohorts of US women and updated meta-analyses
• Nature's Solutions: 20 Natural Agents Backed by Science to Prevent and Aid Stroke Recovery
• The China Stroke Secondary Prevention Trial (CSSPT) protocol: a double-blinded, randomized, controlled trial of combined folic acid and B vitamins for secondary prevention of stroke
• Lowering homocysteine in patients with ischemic stroke to prevent recurrent stroke, myocardial infarction, and death: the Vitamin Intervention for Stroke Prevention (VISP) randomized controlled trial.
• How safe and effective are new drugs for stroke prevention?
• Reducing Recurrent Strokes
• A case–control study on egg consumption and risk of stroke among Iranian population
• Quickly Treating Mini-Stroke Can Cut Risk for Future Stroke
• Hypothyroidism is a protective factor in acute stroke patients.
• Stroke prevention may also reduce dementia

Acupuncture / Electroacupuncture

• Electroacupuncture pretreatment-induced neuroprotection against cerebral ischemia.
• Acupuncture could be a promising preventive and treatment strategy for stroke.

Alpha-Linolenic Acid

Alpha-Linolenic Acid: An Omega-3 Fatty Acid with Neuroprotective Properties—Ready for Use in the Stroke Clinic?

Diet

• The present meta-analysis of prospective cohorts suggests that higher magnesium intake is associated with reduced risk of total and ischaemic stroke
• The results from this meta-analysis support the hypothesis that consumption of vegetables and fruits could reduce the risk of stroke.
• A diet rich in magnesium, potassium, and calcium may contribute to reduced risk of stroke among men.
• Better adherence to a Mediterranean diet was associated with lower risk of myocardial Infarction, heart Failure and ischemic stroke.
• Consumption of fruit and vegetables-particularly cruciferous and green leafy vegetables, citrus fruit and juice reduced ischemic stroke risk.
• Possible contribution of green tea drinking habits to the prevention of stroke.
• Daily consumption of green-yellow vegetables and fruits is associated with a lower risk of total stroke, intracerebral hemorrhage, and cerebral infarction mortality.
• Frequent nut consumption has a beneficial effect on cardiovascular disease risk.
• High olive oil consumption had a protective role on the risk of stroke in older subjects.
• Olive oil contains protective agents that block the expansion of brain core at the expense of penumbral neurons.
• Neuroprotective panel of olive polyphenols: mechanisms of action, anti-demyelination, and anti-stroke properties.
• Higher fruit and vegetable consumption might reduce the risk of stroke.
• Higher intakes of fruit-based flavonoids were associated with a lower risk of nonfatal MI and ischemic stroke in men.
• Benefits of nuts for stroke prevention
• White Fruits and Vegetables May Lower Stroke Risk
• Replacing Salt With a Low-Sodium Substitute Prevents Stroke
• At Risk of Stroke or a Stroke Survivor? Try Coconut Oil
• Coconut Oil: A Tropical Treasure for Stroke Prevention and Brain Health

Exercise

• Tai chi chuan exercise is beneficially associated with the primary prevention of stroke in middle aged and elderly adults by inversing the high risk factors of stroke. –
• Habitual physical activity reduces the risk of ischemic stroke.

Supplements / Phytochemicals / Herbs

Acetoside

These findings suggest that acteoside possess potent anti-stroke activity.

Alcohol

Light to moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a lower atherosclerotic burden of aortic plaque.

Alpha Lipoic Acid

This review highlights how administration of ALA protects against rodent models of hypoxic-ischemic injury and exerts an anti depressant like activity and may be applied in stroke prevention.

Astaxanthin

• "Astaxanthin inhibits thrombosis in cerebral vessels of stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats."
• Astaxanthin exhibits antihypertensive and neuroprotective effects in animals.
• High intakes of magnesium and potassium but not calcium were also significantly associated with reduced risk of stroke in women.

Astragalus

• Astragaloside IV can effectively protect the blood-brain barrier and reduce the area of cerebral infarction.

Cannabinoids

• Cannabinoids significantly reduced infarct volume and improve functional outcome in experimental stroke models.
• Data suggest that activity at the Blood Brain Barrier could represent an as yet unrecognised mechanism of CBD-induced neuroprotection in ischaemic stroke

Chlorella

Chlorella and its fractions have a beneficial effect on stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats.

Chocolate / Cocoa

• Chocolate consumption was associated with a significant lower risk of stroke in women.
• Chocolate consumption may reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke not using antihypertensive medication
• Chocolate consumption is associated with a substantial reduction in the risk of cardiometabolic disorders
• The Kuna Indians may have a reduced frequency of myocardial infarction, stroke, diabetes mellitus, and cancer due to their very high intake of flavonol-rich cocoa.

Coffee / Tea

• Coffee consumption of 4 cups or more per day showed a preventive effect on stroke.
• Silent brain infarction was observed less frequently in middle aged Japanese who consumed 3 cups or more of coffee per day.
• Coffee and tea drinking may be associated with reduced rates of stroke and dementia
• Higher consumption of green tea was inversely associated with stroke risk in middle-aged and older Korean men.

Curcumin

• Curcumin (from Turmeric) has a protective effect against Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion (MCAO)
• Curcumin effectively attenuates brain edema in mice with ICH through inhibition of the NF-κB pathway and subsequently the expression of AQP4 and AQP9.
• Dietary curcumin ameliorates aging-related cerebrovascular dysfunction through the AMPK/uncoupling protein 2 pathway.
• Curcumin and curcuminoids are neuroprotective in a variety of preclinical stroke models.
• Curcumin was found to increase thioredoxin protein expression and enzyme activity and to protect neurons against cell injury.
• Curcuminoids prevent experimentally induced neuronal damage in the rat hippocampus.

Folate

• Folic acid supplementation reduced the risk of first stroke associated with elevated total cholesterol by 31% among hypertensive adults.
• There was a 10% reduced risk of stroke and a 4% reduced risk of overall CVD with folic acid supplementation.
• Folic acid supplementation can effectively reduce the risk of stroke in primary prevention.
• Folate intake and risk of stroke among women
• Effect of Smoking and Folate Levels on the Efficacy of Folic Acid Therapy in Prevention of Stroke in Hypertensive Men.
• Folic Acid Therapy Reduces the First Stroke Risk Associated With Hypercholesterolemia Among Hypertensive Patients.
• Folate, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, and methionine intakes and risk of stroke subtypes in male smokers.
• Dietary intake of folate and risk of stroke in US men and women: NHANES I Epidemiologic Follow-up Study. National Health and Nutrition Examination

Note: use as folate not the synthetic folic acid

Garlic

Garlic reduces a multitude of risk factors associated with arteriosclerosis and significantly reduces the risk for heart attack and stroke.

Genistein

Genistein is neuroprotective in murine models of familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and stroke.

Goji Berry

Goji berry polysaccharide is a promising neuronal protector with potent ameliorative effects on key pathological events.

Linden Flower

This animal study supports the use of this plant in folk medicine and suggests its possible effectiveness for stroke prevention.

Lutein

Higher blood concentrations of lutein are generally associated with better cardiometabolic health.

Magnesium

• The present meta-analysis of prospective cohorts suggests that higher magnesium intake is associated with reduced risk of total and ischaemic stroke
• High intakes of magnesium and potassium but not calcium were also significantly associated with reduced risk of stroke in women.
• High intakes of magnesium and potassium but not calcium were also significantly associated with reduced risk of stroke in women. 
• Dietary magnesium intake and risk of stroke: a meta-analysis of prospective studies

Melatonin

• Pre-ischemia melatonin administration significantly protects against cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury.
• A review of the protective role of melatonin in ischemic stroke.

Resveratrol

• Resveratrol could be valuable for the prevention of age-associated and disease-provoked inflammation in postmenopausal women.
• Resveratrol protects against experimental stroke
• Resveratrol; This article summarizes the most recent findings on mechanisms of action involved in the protective effects of this multi target polyphenol.
• This review discusses the neuroprotective potential of resveratrol in stroke, traumatic brain injury and spinal cord injury.

Soy

Soy consumption reduces risk of ischemic stroke.

Sulforaphane

Authors conclude that data from this study provides evidence for the use of sulforaphane in preventing stroke in selected high-risk patient cohorts.

Tea

Long-term tea consumption is associated with reduced risk of ischemic stroke.

Valerian Extract

In an animal study of transitory ischemic stroke, pretreatment with valerian extract has protective effects against ischemic injury in the hippocampal pyramidal neurons by decreasing microglial activation and lipid peroxidation. (Yoo & et.al, 2015)

Vitamin C

Higher plasma vitamin C concentrations are associated with reduced stroke risk.