Large waist may raise stroke risk

Doctors in Germany examined 379 adults in their study. ¶They found that while being overweight, in general, increased the risk of stroke other factors may have a greater impact, such as physical inactivity, smoking, high blood pressure, and diabetes.

However, a large waistline remained strongly associated with an increased risk of stroke. If the waist circumference was greater than 40 inches for men or 34 inches for women, the risk of stroke increased more than four-fold, compared with individuals with a normal waist size.

Doctors also calculated waist-to-hip ratio by dividing the circumference of the waist by the circumference of the hips. Men with waist-to-hip ratio values greater than 0.97 and women with calculations higher than 0.84 faced almost eight times the increased risk for stroke.

The study is in the journal Stroke.