Eating more fruits and vegetables—especially up to about 8 servings a day—lowers your chance of having a stroke, with the biggest drop in risk coming from just adding a few servings to your usual diet.

Scientific Claim

Higher intake of fruits and vegetables is associated with a 16% lower risk of stroke per 200 g/day increase, with the strongest protective effect occurring at lower intake levels and plateauing around 800 g/day.

Original Statement

“For fruits and vegetables combined, the summary RR per 200 g/day was 0.84 (95% CI: 0.76–0.92, I2 = 73%, n = 10) for stroke... There was evidence of a nonlinear association... with stronger reductions in risk at lower levels of intake.”

From study:Fruit and vegetable intake and the risk of cardiovascular disease, total cancer and all-cause mortality—a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective studies

Evidence Quality Assessment

Claim Status

appropriately stated

Study Design Support

Design supports claim

Appropriate Language Strength

association

Can only show association/correlation

Assessment Explanation

The claim uses 'associated with' and reflects the observed relative risk reduction from observational data, correctly avoiding causal language.

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

Fruit and vegetable intake and the risk of cardiovascular disease, total cancer and all-cause mortality—a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective studies

Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis

Human

Eating more fruits and veggies lowers your risk of stroke, and the biggest benefit comes when you go from eating very little to a moderate amount—after about 800 grams a day, eating more doesn’t help much more.

Contradicting (0)

No contradicting evidence found

Source Study

Fruit and vegetable intake and the risk of cardiovascular disease, total cancer and all-cause mortality—a systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis of prospective studies

Score: 43

DOI: 10.1093/ije/dyw319

Similar Assertions

Eating more oranges, grapefruits, and other citrus fruits is linked to a lower chance of having a stroke, with each extra serving helping a bit more.

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People who eat more fruits and veggies have a slightly lower chance of dying from heart disease, and both fruits and veggies contribute to this benefit.

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People who eat more fruits and veggies each day—up to about 8 servings—are less likely to get heart disease, with the biggest drop in risk happening when they go from eating very little to eating a moderate amount.

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People who eat more fruits and vegetables—up to about 10 servings a day—are much less likely to develop heart disease, with the biggest drop in risk coming from adding even a few servings to their diet.

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People who eat more fruits and vegetables each day—up to about 10 servings—are less likely to die from any cause, with the biggest drop in death risk coming from adding even a few servings to their daily meals.

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