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" The use of cholesterol as a reliable indicator of stroke risk may need to be reassessed, after scientists found that elevated cholesterol is only associated with an increased risk of stroke in men. Danish researchers conducted a 33-year study involving 7,579 women and 6,372 men, all of whom had their levels of non-fasting triglycerides and cholesterol recorded between 1976 and 1978. Over the course of the study period, 837 women and 837 men had an ischaemic stroke, which occurs when the supply of blood to the brain is obstructed, usually by fatty deposits inside blood vessels. In both men and women, elevated levels of non-fasting triglycerides were associated with an increased risk of stroke. However, raised cholesterol levels were only associated with a heightened risk of stroke in men. Commenting on the report in the Annals of Neurology, lead author Dr Marianne Benn, from Copenhagen University Hospital, concluded: &amp;#039;Our study was the first to examine how the risk of stroke for very high levels of non-fasting triglycerides compared with very high cholesterol levels in the general population. &amp;#039;Our findings suggest that levels of non-fasting triglycerides should be included in stroke prevention guidelines which currently focus on total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels.&amp;#039; According to NHS figures, two-thirds of adults in England have cholesterol levels that exceed the government&amp;#039;s recommended target of less than 5mmol/L. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/healthy-living/news/a20658/study-casts-doubt-on-reliability-of-cholesterol-as-stroke-risk-indicator/>