2012-01-22
Magnesium May Reduce Stroke Risk
Increased intakes of magnesium in the diet may reduce the risk of
stroke, says a new meta analysis from Sweden.
Pooling data from seven
prospective studies revealed that, for every 100 mg per day increase in magnesium intake, the risk of stroke was reduced by 9%. The meta-analysis was described as "well done" in an accompanying editorial from Yiqing Song from Harvard Medical School and Simin Liu from UCLA.
Diet is know to have an impact on a person's risk of having a stroke, and in particular a connection has been made between intake of sodium and hypertension. Earlier dietary surveys show that a large portion of adults do not meet the RDA for magnesium (320 mg per day for women and 420 mg per day for men).
Susanna Larsson, Nicola Orsini and Alicja Wolk from the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm conducted a dose response meta-analysis of seven studies including 241,378 participants. Results showed that every increase in magnesium intake of 100 mg per day was associated with an 8% and 9% reduction in the risk of total and ischemic stroke, respectively.
In the editorial, Song and Liu called for "a better understanding of mechanisms to enable that eventual large efficacy trial."
Source: American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
Published online ahead of print, doi: 10.3945/ajcn.111.022376
"Dietary magnesium intake and risk of stroke: a meta-analysis of prospective studies"
Authors: S.C. Larsson, N. Orsini, A. Wolk
