Bananas 'could prevent strokes'
By: Unknown Author
BBC News, August 13, 2002
Bananas 'could prevent strokes'
Bananas
are rich in potassium
A banana a
day could prevent a deficiency which, scientists say, might increase the
risk of stroke.
The tropical
fruit is rich in potassium, and a study of 5,600 people aged over 65
suggested that those with the lowest intake of the mineral were 50% more
likely to suffer a stroke.
The study
also suggested that people who take diuretic drugs - which increase the
amount of water excreted in the urine - may also increase the risk,
perhaps because they stop potassium from the diet being absorbed by the
body.
Diuretics are
frequently prescribed to older people - ironically, to control blood
pressure and reduce the chance of one type of stroke.
Patients with
heart failure also take the drugs to relieve the strain on their heart and
lungs.
Patients
taking diuretics with the lowest levels of potassium in their blood were
two-and-a-half times more likely to have a stroke compared with diuretic
takers who had the highest levels of potassium.
The study was
carried out by doctors at the Queen's Medical Center in Honolulu, and
published in the journal Neurology.
Extra
potassium
Dr Deborah
Green, who led the study, suggested that patients who have to take
diuretics for valid medical reasons might benefit from extra potassium in
their diets.
She said:
"Diuretics clearly prevent stroke by controlling high blood pressure,
but we wanted to see whether their effect on potassium levels would affect
the risk of stroke.
"The
question is whether diuretics would be even more effective with adequate
potassium intake."
Blood
pressure
Neurologist
Dr Steven Levine, of the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York, said
that while the increased risk in isolation was small, when added to other
risk factors it could be significant.
He said:
"But overall, despite this potential adverse effect, evidence shows
that low-dose diuretics are highly-effective anti-high blood pressure
therapies for preventing both stroke and heart disease."
A spokesman
for the Stroke Association, which funds research into the effects of diet
on stroke, said that the connection between the mineral and stroke was not
fully understood.
She said:
"There clearly is a link between potassium and stroke although the
extent of this is not known at present.
"Sodium
levels in the body are kept in balance by the mineral potassium, which is
found in fruit and vegetables."
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