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TUESDAY, June 10, 2003 (HealthDayNews) -- Lifestyle and dietary changes made by Chinese immigrants to the United States help reduce their stroke risk.
So says a study presented June 9 at the American Heart Association's Second Asia Pacific Scientific Forum in Honolulu.
The two-year study compared 134 Chinese immigrants who suffered a stroke with a control group of 132 stroke-free Chinese immigrants. The average age of the male and female study subjects was 74.
The people in the study provided information about their behavioral characteristics, socioeconomic and medical status, and changes in those factors after they immigrated to the United States.
Preliminary results of the study found that changes in diet, exercise and job status after immigration to the United States reduced stroke risk in the control group.
"People in the control group were more likely to reduce the salt and sugar intake in their diet once they immigrated to the United States. In China, the food is very salty. Salt is often used as a preservative for fish and meat," researcher Dr. Jing Fang, assistant professor of epidemiology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, said in a statement.
This high salt diet can lead to hypertension, which is a risk factor for stroke.
The study found that the people in the non-stroke control group were more likely to eat fish at least three times a week than those in the stroke group (65 percent compared to 49 percent) and more likely to eat more fish after immigration. Those in the control group were more likely to buy fresh fish and meat than the people in the stroke group.
More than half of the people in the control group drank fruit juice at least once a week, compared to less than 31 percent of those in the stroke group.
The study also found that people in the control group were more likely to have increased their exercise levels after immigration. They were also more likely to report having better jobs in the United States compared to when they lived in China.
Both groups had similar levels of cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption.
More information
Here's where you can learn more about stroke.
