| From Nutrition Newsbytes Your link to nutrition discoveries IN THE NEWS LOW INTAKE OF B VITAMINS MAY LEAD TO STROKE Young women who don't get enough folic acid and other B vitamins may be at a higher risk for stroke. Researchers at the University of Maryland in Baltimore measured blood levels of the amino acid homocysteine in 167 women ages 15 to 44 who had suffered a stroke, and in 328 stroke-free control subjects. Women with the highest levels of homocysteine had more than twice the stroke risk than those with lower blood levels of the amino acid. Consuming more folic acid and other B vitamins is believed to lower blood levels of homocysteine. Even when researchers took other stroke factors into account, such as cigarette smoking and socioeconomic status, women with the highest blood levels of homocysteine were still 60 percent more likely to suffer a stroke than women with the lowest levels. The risk for stroke with these homocysteine levels was similar to smoking a pack of cigarettes a day, according to Dr. Steven J. Kittner, professor of neurology, epidemiology, and preventive medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Even moderately higher homocysteine levels indicated a greater risk of stroke among women in the study. Researchers say the next step is to perform a study on whether a stroke can be prevented with high doses of B vitamins. Reprinted with permission; Copyright 2000 Enzymatic Therapy. (Enzymatic Therapy manufactures and distributes more than 200 nutritional |