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A study has found that a
diet extremely low in saturated fat may raise the risk of a rare type
of stroke in some women.
The researchers analyzed data from the long-running
Nurses' Health Study that began in 1980 with nearly 100,000 women.
By 1996, the ones who ate the least saturated fat
(about 20 grams per day) were about twice
as likely as women eating moderate amounts (25 to 36 grams)
to have suffered a particular type of stroke called
an intraparenchymal hemorrhage.
Most strokes are ischemic strokes, which result from
the blockage of an artery carrying blood to the brain. Hemorrhagic strokes
occur when a blood vessel in the brain leaks or bursts. Intraparenchymal
hemorrhage is one of the rarer forms of hemorrhagic stroke. Of the 690
strokes observed in the study group nearly 11 percent, were intraparenchymal,
or occurring within the brain tissue.
The increased stroke risk in the low-fat group occurred
primarily among women with high blood pressure.
The extremely low fat intake, combined with high blood pressure, may contribute
to a structural weakness in blood vessels that causes them to rupture.
The researchers believe that the findings
probably apply to men, too.
Circulation 2001 Feb 13;103:856-863
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