It’s pretty well known that on average, African-Americans have higher blood pressure and higher risk of stroke than Whites. But a study just published in JAMA Internal Medicine was actually able to link the two and quantify the black-white differences.
It was all part of the REasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) study that assessed stroke risk for 27,748 black and white men and women 45 and older and followed them for more than four years.
Over the course of the study, lead researcher George Howard and his colleagues recorded 715 strokes. They found that a 10 point increase in systolic blood pressure increased whites’ stroke risk by 8 percent but increased blacks’ by 24% (blood pressure has two numbers—systolic and diastolic—a 10 point increase means going from 130/90—pronounced “one thirty over ninety”—to 130 over 80). Looking at the 45-65 age group, which is considered the highest risk, blacks were three more likely to actually have a stroke than whites.
This study clearly shows that even having mild hypertension can have devastating consequences—especially for African-Americans.
You can read an abstract of the study here. https://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleID=1485077
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