A new study shows just how important mental health is to the health of our bodies.


The findings, published in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association, shows that having depression may double the risk of stroke for middle-aged women.


"When treating women, doctors need to recognize the serious nature of poor mental health and what effects it can have in the long term," study researcher Caroline Jackson, Ph.D., an epidemiologist at the University of Queensland in Australia, said in a statement.


The study included 10,547 women between ages 47 and 52 who were followed for 12 years. Of those women, 24 percent reported having depression and 177 of the women had a stroke for the first time during the study period.


Women with depression had a 2.4 times higher risk of stroke compared with women without depression, researchers found. And after taking into account other stroke factors, they still had a 1.9 times higher risk of stroke.


A similar study, conducted in 80,000 women with an average age of 66 who were part of the Nurses' Health Study, showed that depression can raise stroke risk by 30 percent. That study showed a potential role of antidepressant medication in stroke risk, as women with a history of depression who were on these drugs had a 40 percent higher risk of stroke, and women without a history of depression who were on the drugs had a 30 percent higher risk of stroke.


That association may go in the other direction, as well. Past research has also shown that stroke survivors face a higher risk of later depression, PsychCentral reported.


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  • Whole Grains


    Eating lots of whole grains could help to <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11000647">lower risk of ischemic stroke for women</a>, according to a study in the <em>Journal of the American Medical Association</em>. The findings showed that women who ate the <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=117936&page=1#.UHL5F_mfGPJ">most whole grains</a> in the study (like the amount you'd get by eating two or three whole grain bread slices every day) had a 30 to 40 percent lower stroke risk, compared with women who ate the fewest whole grains in the study (like the amount you'd get by eating just a half-slice of whole grain bread every day), according to ABC News.




  • Citrus Fruits


    An <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/26/citrus-stroke-risk-antioxidant-flavonoid_n_1299753.html">antioxidant found in citrus fruits</a> could help to lower risk of stroke in women, according to a study of 70,000 women earlier this year in the journal <em>Stroke</em>. Researchers from Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital found that women who <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/26/citrus-stroke-risk-antioxidant-flavonoid_n_1299753.html">consumed the most flavonoids</a> over a 14-year period had a 19 percent lower risk of stroke than the women who consumed the fewest flavonoids during that time period.




  • Antioxidants


    While antioxidants aren't exactly a food on their own, fruits, vegetables and whole grains that are rich in them are linked with a lower stroke risk for women. Research published in the journal <em>Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association</em> showed that women with no heart disease history who <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/03/antioxidants-stroke-risk-diet-food-vegetables-fruits_n_1124102.html">consumed the most antioxidants</a> from food had a 17 percent lower risk of stroke, and women <em>with</em> a heart disease history who consumed the most antioxidants from food had a <em>57</em> percent decreased risk of hemorrhagic stroke. The researchers, from the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, speculated that the protection comes from <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/03/antioxidants-stroke-risk-diet-food-vegetables-fruits_n_1124102.html">antioxidants' ability to stop inflammation </a>and oxidative stress in the body by neutralizing harmful free radicals. Antioxidants can also help to reduce blood clots and lower blood pressure and decrease inflammation, <a href="http://newsroom.heart.org/pr/aha/vegetables-fruits-grains-reduce-219833.aspx">according to the American Heart Association</a>.




  • Low-Fat Dairy


    Consuming low-fat dairy could help to <a href="http://healthland.time.com/2012/04/20/skim-milk-drinkers-rejoice-you-may-have-a-lower-stroke-risk/">lower the risk of stroke</a>, according to a <em>Stroke</em> study. The research showed that the adults who <a href="http://www.webmd.com/stroke/news/20120419/low-fat-dairy-may-help-reduce-stroke-risk">consumed the most low-fat dairy</a> over a 10-year period had a 12 percent lower risk of stroke compared with those who consumed the least low-fat dairy over the time period. "It is possible that <a href="http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-04/aha-eld041612.php">vitamin D in low-fat dairy foods</a> may explain, in part, the observed lowered risk of stroke in this study because of its potential effect on blood pressure," study researcher Susanna Larsson, Ph.D., associate professor of nutritional epidemiology at the Karolinska Institutet, said in a statement.




  • Magnesium-Rich Foods


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  • Fish


    Making sure to <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/26/us-fish-stroke-idUSTRE78P07V20110926">eat some fish</a> every week could help to lower risk of stroke, according to a review of studies published in the journal <em>Stroke</em>. Reuters reported on the study, which showed that eating fish several times a week was linked with a lower risk of stroke, compared with non-fish eaters. "I think overall, fish does provide a beneficial package of nutrients, in <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/26/us-fish-stroke-idUSTRE78P07V20110926">particular the omega-3s</a>, that could explain this lower risk," Dariush Mozaffarian, an epidemiologist at the Harvard School of Public Health, whose research was part of the <em>Stroke</em> analysis, told Reuters.




  • Learn About Stroke Risks


    Learn the different symptoms of stroke, and what happens inside the body when you suffer a stroke.