​High dietary intake of processed meats may elevate the risk of developing stroke in Swedish men.

This research work was carried out to assess the role of high dietary ingestion red and processed meats in the development of stroke in Swedish men. Using self-administered dietary questionnaires, researchers monitored the diets of 40,291 Swedish men within the age bracket of 45-79 years and with no previous record of cancer and cardiovascular disease for 10.1 years. The relative risk of stroke of each participant in this study was also determined.

Researchers discovered that habitual consumption of processed meats—but not fresh red meat—increased the odds of having stroke and cerebral infarction. The results of this study show that elevated risk of stroke is associated with regular intake of processed meats in Swedish men.