Fourteen clinical trials were reviewed by researchers at Zhengzhou University in China and found that Vitamin B lowered the risk of stroke for some people and had borderline significance for populations were not getting enough folate or vitamin B9.
Folate is naturally in a wide variety of foods, including dark green leafy vegetables, fruits, nuts, beans and grains. Folic acid, a supplemental form of folate, is often found in fortified cereals.
Researchers did not find a reduction in stroke risk for vitamin B12.
Vitamin B supplements did not appear to lessen the severity of stroke or risk of death, the researchers reported online in Neurology.
The American Heart Association recommends that healthy people get adequate nutrients by eating a variety of foods in moderation, rather than by taking supplements.
“Moreover, vitamin or mineral supplements aren’t a substitute for a balanced, nutritious diet that limits excess calories, saturated fat, trans fat, sodium and dietary cholesterol,” reads the American Heart Association scientific position. “This dietary approach has been shown to reduce coronary heart disease risk in both healthy people and those with coronary disease.”
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Photo courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention