(18-05-11) Potassium-Rich Diet Tied To Lower Stroke Risk

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) ? People who get plenty of potassium-rich foods in
their diet may be less likely to suffer a stroke, a new research review finds.

The review, of 11 studies following more than 247,000 adults, found that as
potassium intake went up, participants' risk of suffering a stroke went down.

That does not prove that potassium, itself, deserves the credit. But the foods
highest in the mineral -- including many fruits and vegetables -- are
considered generally healthy choices.

So the findings support experts' advice that people eat more fruits and
vegetables to help cut their risk of cardiovascular disease and other ills, the
researchers report in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Potassium is an important mineral that helps regulate the heartbeat, conduct
nerve impulses and contract muscles. Most adults need about 4,700 milligrams of
potassium per day.

Potassium is found in a variety of fruits and vegetables, with potatoes,
tomatoes, bananas, plums and raisins among the richest sources. Other sources
include beans, dairy, nuts and molasses.

In theory, a diet with enough potassium could trim a person's risk of heart
disease and stroke because the mineral helps lower blood pressure. But studies
so far have come to mixed conclusions as to whether people who get plenty of
potassium really do have fewer strokes and heart problems.

For the new study, researchers led by Dr. Lanfranco D'Elia, of the University
of Naples Medical School in Italy, combined the results of 11 international
studies that followed 247,510 adults for up to 19 years.

In most of the studies, participants filled out diet questionnaires at the
outset, and researchers kept track of who developed heart disease or suffered a
stroke over the ensuing years. In a few studies, the researchers measured
participants' potassium levels from urine samples.

Individually, the studies came to conflicting results. But with the results
combined, D'Elia's team found that for every 1,640-milligram increase in
people's daily potassium intake, the odds of suffering a stroke declined by 21
percent.

There was no strong link overall between potassium intake and heart disease
risk, though a few individual studies did find that people with higher intakes
had a lower risk.

The 21-percent reduction in stroke risk would translate into as many as 1.15
million fewer stroke deaths worldwide each year, D'Elia's team estimates.

But whether potassium is actually the reason for the lower stroke risk is not
clear.

In most of the studies, researchers tried to account for other factors in
stroke and heart disease risk -- like overall health, weight, exercise habits
and dietary fat intake. But people who get a lot of potassium could still have
lifestyle habits or other characteristics -- like more education or higher
incomes -- that might explain the lower stroke risk.

Still, D'Elia and his colleagues write, boosting potassium intake --
especially by eating more fruits and vegetables -- is in line with existing
recommendations for preventing or managing heart disease and stroke.

There are some people, however, who may need to be careful about potassium
intake and should ask their doctors before consuming more of the mineral. They
include people with kidney disease, which can reduce the body's ability to
clear potassium, and those on certain blood pressure drugs.

Too much potassium in the blood can lead to a condition called hyperkalemia,
which can cause dangerous heart-rhythm disturbances.

SOURCE: http://bit.ly/g7C9SZ Journal of the American College of Cardiology,
March 8, 2011.

News

---

In evidenza

"L'informazione presente nel sito serve a migliorare, e non a sostituire, il rapporto medico-paziente."

Per coloro che hanno problemi di salute si consiglia di consultare sempre il proprio medico curante.