Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 Apr;12(2):323-327.
doi: 10.1016/j.dhjo.2018.11.003. Epub 2018 Nov 9.

Prevalence of five lifestyle risk factors among U.S. adults with and without stroke

Ryan R Bailey  1 , Allison Phad  2 , Ryan McGrath  3 , Debra Haire-Joshu  4
Affiliations

Prevalence of five lifestyle risk factors among U.S. adults with and without stroke

Ryan R Bailey et al. Disabil Health J. 2019 Apr.

Abstract

Background: History of stroke increases cardiometabolic risk, which can be exacerbated by the presence of unhealthy lifestyle factors. Population-based estimates of lifestyle risk factors in people with stroke are lacking but could be used to inform research, policy, and healthcare practice.

Objective: To compare population-based estimates of the prevalence of five lifestyle risk factors-low fruit and vegetable consumption, insufficient physical activity, smoking, heavy alcohol consumption, and overweight/obesity-among U.S. adults with and without stroke.

Methods: Representative data from noninstitutionalized adults aged ≥18 years (stroke, n = 37,225; no stroke, n = 851,607) from the 2015 and 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) were used to estimate prevalence of individual and total number of risk factors. Logistic regression models were used to determine the odds of lifestyle risk factors in adults with stroke, adjusting for sex, age, ethnicity, marital status, education, income, and disability.

Results: Prevalence and adjusted odds ratios (AOR) were higher in individuals with stroke compared to those without stroke for insufficient physical activity (56.5% vs. 49.5%, AOR: 1.14) and smoking (30.1% vs. 16.6%, AOR: 1.16), but lower for heavy alcohol consumption (5.4% vs. 6.1%, AOR: 0.76). Prevalence for low fruit and vegetable consumption (51.7% vs. 46.0%) and overweight/obesity (70.2% vs. 64.5%) was higher among adults with stroke, but differences were attenuated by demographic characteristics. Additionally, clustering of 4-5 lifestyle risk factors was higher in adults with stroke (9.0% vs. 5.3%, AOR: 1.12).

Conclusion: Additional research and healthcare interventions are needed to improve lifestyle risk factors in adults with stroke.

Keywords: BRFSS; Health behaviors; Physical activity; Prevalence; Stroke.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Crude (filled box) and adjusted (open circle) odds ratios for individual and total number of lifestyle risk factors. Adults without stroke was the reference group (i.e. odds ratio = 1). Adjusted odds ratios control for sex, age, ethnicity, marital status, education, annual household income, and disability.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Kernan WN, Ovbiagele B, Black HR, et al. Guidelines for the prevention of stroke in patients with stroke and transient ischemic attack. A guideline for healthcare professionals from the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. Stroke. 2011;42(1):227–276. - PubMed
    1. Towfighi A, Markovic D, Ovbiagele B. Impact of a healthy lifestyle on all-cause and cardiovascular mortality after stroke in the USA. Journal of neurology, neurosurgery, and psychiatry. 2012;83(2):146–151. - PubMed
    1. Greenlund KJ, Giles WH, Keenan NL, Croft JB, Mensah GA. Physician advice, patient actions, and health-related quality of life in secondary prevention of stroke through diet and exercise. Stroke. 2002;33(2):565–570. - PubMed
    1. Tryon WW. Evaluating statistical difference, equivalence, and indeterminacy using inferential confidence intervals: an integrated alternative method of conducting null hypothesis statistical tests. Psychological Methods. 2001;6(4):371–386. - PubMed
    1. de Groot LCPMG, for the SI, Verheijden MW, et al. Lifestyle, nutritional status, health, and mortality in elderly people across europe: A review of the longitudinal results of the SENECA study. The Journals of Gerontology: Series A. 2004;59(12):1277–1284. - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms