Magnesium to reduce STROKE risk...

Study suggests diets rich in magnesium may cut stroke risk in smokers.

"Diets rich [in] magnesium, found in whole grains and vegetables, could help reduce stroke risk in smokers," according to a study published in the Mar. 10 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine. Susanna Larsson, Ph.D., of the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, and colleagues, followed over 26,000 men "for more than 13 years," and "found that those who consumed an average of 589 milligrams of magnesium each day in their diets had a 15 percent lower risk for cerebral infarction -- a stroke that occurs when blood flow to the brain is blocked -- than those who consumed less magnesium."

While "Larsson and colleagues did not investigate mechanisms by which magnesium might reduce ischemic stroke risk, they called the link 'biologically plausible.'" The researchers cited "earlier research indicating that high magnesium intake has beneficial effects on blood lipid and glucose levels, markers of systemic and vascular inflammation, and lipoprotein peroxidation."