Obesity in Teens, Higher Risk of Stroke Before 50

*The following is excerpted from an online article posted on HealthDay.

Strokes are on the rise among people younger than 50, and new research suggests that packing on the pounds during the teen years is a big reason why.

The more overweight you were from ages 16 to 20, the greater your risk of having a stroke before age 50, the new study shows.

The researchers looked at teen body mass index (BMI) and first stroke before age 50 among 1.9 million Israeli males and females. Two nationwide databases were used: the Israel Defense Forces and the Israeli National Stroke Registry.

Follow-up between 2014 and 2018 showed there were 1,088 strokes, at an average age of 41. Some occurred before age 30.

Overweight teens had twice the risk of having a stroke before turning 50. With obesity, they had a 3.4-times higher risk for stroke, when compared to folks in the low-normal BMI group.

Even those with BMIs in the high-normal range were more likely to have a stroke before 50 than those with lower BMIs, the study showed.

The study appears in the June issue of Stroke.

Source: HealthDay
https://consumer.healthday.com/5-13-obesity-in-teens-higher-risk-of-stroke-before-50-2652937614.html