(Defeat Diabetes® News) -- Fast food restaurants, the common enemy of nearly all health conscious individuals and organizations, has recently been linked on a macro-scale, to strokes. According to a recent study, the number of fast food restaurants in a neighborhood, is directly linked to the number of strokes within that community, though the exact reason is unknown.

 

Ischemic strokes, which occur when an artery is blocked in the brain, account for 87% of the nearly 800,000 annual strokes reported annually in the United States. The current study focused on the incidence of ischemic strokes in a community, in relation to the number of fast food restaurants in that community. It's believed that more that 95% of Americans consume fast foods.

 

It was found that communities with the largest number of fast food restaurants subsequently had a 13% higher ischemic stroke incidence, as opposed to communities with the lowest number of fast food restaurants. In between these extremes, it was found that each additional fast food restaurant within a community raised stroke risk by approximately one percent, after adjusting for demographics, socioeconomic status, and generalized community size.

 

A study of this nature does indeed indicate a connection, though it is incapable of drawing specific conclusions as to why the connection exists. Lead author Dr. Lewis Morgenstern sums up these limitations: "The data show a true association. What we don't know is whether fast food actually increased the risk because of its contents, or whether fast-food restaurants are a marker of unhealthy neighborhoods."

 

Despite these limitations, based on the fundamental notion that fast food is generally unhealthy and a risk factor for strokes when consumed in large quantities, it's recommended by the current research group that community education and prevention programs concerning strokes, be developed in locations densely populated with fast food restaurants.