Study Says More Wine, Coffee and Leafy Veggie Can Lower Stroke Risk, Cardiovascular Disease

Inflammation can stimulate changes, particularly in blood vessels, resulting in atherosclerosis, which refers to the accumulation of fats, cholesterol, and other substance within the artery walls, which can limit the flow of blood.

According to a study that Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health researchers led, indulging in more wine and coffee and consuming more leafy vegetables have been found to lower the risk of stroke and heart disease.

The study, which carefully investigated three decades of dietary data for over 210,000 Americans, was able to identify a variety of particular foods like carrots, leafy greens, tea, whole grains, coffee, and red wine that have large amounts of antioxidants and vitamins that can hugely benefit the health of an individual.

However, the research team found that a diet rich in "pro-inflammatory foods and ingredients" like processed meat, red meat, and refined carbohydrates could increase one's risk for heart ailment by 46 percent and stroke by roughly 28 percent, even following adjustments made for alcohol use, intake of salt, smoking and blood pressure in results.

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According to a study that Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health researchers led, indulging in more wine and coffee and consuming more leafy vegetables have been found to lower the risk of stroke and heart disease.

Use of Food-Based Dietary Index

According to the study's lead author Dr. Jun Li, through the use of an empirically-established, food-based dietary index to assess inflammation levels linked to dietary intake, they found that "dietary patterns with higher inflammatory potential" were linked to an increased rate of cardiovascular disease.

Dr. Li, who is also a Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health nutrition researcher, added that their study is one of the first to associate a "food-based dietary inflammatory index" with long-term CVD risk.

Reports on the study said the researchers limited too, consumption of refined sugars and grains, fried dishes, and sodas since they are among the most significant contributors to the "pro-inflammatory dietary index," which is derived from 18 predefined food groups that altogether present the strongest links to a rise in inflammatory biomarkers.

As mentioned, the research team noted that inflammation could stimulate changes in blood vessels, leading atherosclerosis to develop. The plaque, in particular, as indicated in the study, "can burst and trigger" a possibly life-threatening blood clot.

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Importance of Food Choices and Dietary Patterns

Senior consultant at the Barcelona, Spain-based Hospital Clinic's department of internal medicine Dr. Ramon Estruch said a better knowledge of health protection which various foods and dietary patterns provide, primarily their anti-inflammatory characteristics, need to provide the basis for developing even "healthier dietary patterns" to shield against heart ailment.

Estruch, also an author of an accompanying editorial said, when opting for food to include in the diet, one should indeed be aware of "their pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory potential. The new findings were published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

In an independent research study, the authors investigated how incorporating walnuts into a person's regular diet would improve inflammatory biomarkers.

Past research found that regular consumption of nuts is linked to lower risk for heart disease, not to mention lower overall levels of cholesterol. However, there has been limited research associating nut consumption with "less inflammation in the body."

In this said research, over 600 participants have designated diets minus walnuts, or a diet in which walnuts, about 30 to 60 grams each day, were regularly incorporated.

After a two-year follow-up period, those who consumed a diet with walnuts presented substantially lower levels of inflammation in their body in "six out of 10 of the inflammatory biomarkers tested."

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