Vitamin E May Cut Stroke Risk in Half, Study Says
Source:	Foods for the Future
Date:	April 23, 1999
TORONTO, April 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Vitamin E supplements not only may help prevent stroke, but can reduce stroke risk by more than half, according to a new medical study presented this week at the American Academy of Neurology's annual meeting in Toronto. "A person's risk for stroke is reduced by 53 percent if a vitamin supplement containing Vitamin E is taken," the report by a team of New York researchers said. The study's authors examined Vitamin E intake of participants through diet alone, without supplementation, and compared their findings to diets with vitamin supplementation. Vitamin E consumption by those who had suffered a stroke was then compared to Vitamin E consumption habits of healthy subjects. The American Academy of Neurology reported the results: "Those who never had a stroke were two times more likely to take vitamin supplements than those who had suffered a stroke. Vitamin E from foods did not impact stroke risk." Dr. Richard Benson of Columbia Presbyterian Center at the New York Presbyterian Hospital, said that, "using a vitamin to help maintain good health is appealing to a lot of people because it doesn't require much effort or a prescription, and it's affordable." In the study, researchers examined 850 subjects -- African-American, Caucasian and Hispanic adults with an average age of 69. Among the 850, 350 had experienced a stroke previously. Roughly half the group took vitamin supplements. "This study reveals the important role that vitamin supplements can play in preventing common diseases such as stroke," said Dr. Ralph Sacco, also of Columbia Presbyterian Center, a co-author of the study. Research for the study was funded by a National Institutes of Health grant. The American Academy of Neurology is an association of neurologists and neuroscience professionals based in St. Paul, Minnesota. (Foods for the Future provides factual information to the media concerning food products, health and nutrition. It is a project of the T. Dean Reed Company and is supported by U.S. agribusiness.)