A recent study published in Circulation , a journal of the American Heart Association, found that a diet extremely low in saturated fat may raise the risk of a rare type of stroke in some women. However, researchers caution that women should not stop trying to reduce the amount of saturated fat intake. The study began in 1980 with 85,764 women. By 1996, the ones who ate the least saturated fat were about twice as likely as women eating moderate amounts to have suffered a particular type of stroke called an intraparenchymal hemorrhage.
Hemorrhagic strokes occur when a blood vessel in the brain leaks or bursts.
The increased stroke risk in the low-fat group occurred primarily among women with high blood pressure. Dr. Meir Stampfer, co-author of the study and professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health, said that the extremely low fat intake, combined with high blood pressure, may contribute to a weakness in the blood vessels that causes them to rupture. He said the findings probably apply to men, too. People trying to lower their risk of a stroke by reducing saturated fat should try to do it in moderation, Stampfer said. But they should still be on the low side.