Citrus women stroke-Researchers have identified a compound found in oranges, grapefruits, and other citrus fruits that may lower a woman's stroke risk. Previous studies suggest that eating fruits and vegetables helps protect against strokes, and many believe that antioxidant compounds known as flavonoids may explain why, because they have been shown to improve blood vessel function and they have anti-inflammatory effects. Among other things, flavonoids give fruits and veggies their vibrant colors. They are also found in chocolate and red wine. By some estimates there are more than 5,000 of them. In the newly published study, flavonoids abundant in citrus fruits known as flavanones appeared to give the most protection against
stroke. Women whose diets included the highest amount of flavanones had a 19% lower risk of suffering a blood-clot-related stroke than women with the lowest intake of the compound.
"Our study supports the conclusion that flavanones are associated with a modest reduction in stroke risk," says researcher Kathryn M. Rexrode, MD, MPH, of Boston's Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital. Along with researchers from Norwich Medical School in the United Kingdom, Rexrode and Harvard colleagues attempted to better understand the impact of six specific subtypes of flavonoids on stroke risk. They did this by analyzing 14 years of follow-up data on nearly 70,000 female nurses participating in a nationwide women's health study. At enrollment and every four years thereafter, the women were asked to fill out questionnaires detailing the foods they ate.
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