Coffee, Sex, Blowing Nose May Increase Risk of a Stroke, Dutch Study Finds

Researchers in the Netherlands analyzed 250 patients who survived a stroke and identified eight risk factors tied to the event

By Michelle Fay Cortez

Drinking coffee may raise the risk of deadly stroke by 11 percent in millions of people with undiagnosed brain aneurysms, according to a study linking spikes in blood pressure to the rupture of weakened blood vessels in the brain.

Researchers from University Medical Center in Utrecht, the Netherlands, analyzed 250 patients who survived a stroke and identified eight risk factors tied to the event. They included drinking a cup of coffee, which carried the highest risk, having sex, physical exercise, nose blowing, straining to defecate, drinking cola and being startled or angry.

About 2 percent to 3 percent of the general population has aneurysms, and most arent diagnosed, said Monique H.M. Vlak, lead author of the study published today in the journal Stroke. Those who are diagnosed get surgery or other treatment to reduce the risk of rupture, she said in a telephone interview. The findings apply to those who cant get treatment, such as those who are too old or are awaiting care, Vlack said.

The study generates a hypothesis of how these aneurysms rupture, Vlak, a neurologist at the medical center, said. These events cause a temporary increase in blood pressure. The duration of the increased risk is about an hour.

The study may have some bias since it included only peoplewho had survived a rupture and took surveys three weeks afterthe event, the researchers said. Still, it makes sense forpeople who know they have aneurysms to take protective steps,they said. Drinking less coffee and treating constipation mayreduce the risk of a hemorrhage, Vlak said.

Additional studies are needed to see if taking drugs tolower blood pressure will reduce the risk of rupture, she said.

Cortez is a reporter for Bloomberg News.