Blood Type & Early Stroke Risk

[Webster]

Science Alert: Your Blood Type Affects Risk of Early Stroke, Study Reveals

You might not think your blood type has much to do with your health, but research suggests that it can have an effect.

According to one study, there is in fact a surprising link between blood type and stroke risk.

The research suggests people carrying one specific group A blood type face a higher likelihood of stroke before age 60.

The discovery, published in a 2022 study, deepens our understanding of how our unique biological makeup can impact our health. "This important and surprising research finding adds to our current knowledge about non-modifiable risk factors for stroke – including a person's blood type," said University of Maryland physician-scientist Mark Gladwin when the study was published.

You've probably heard of the A, B, AB, and O groups, which refer to the various chemical markers, known as antigens, found on the surface of our red blood cells.

Even within these major blood types, there are subtle variations caused by mutations in the genes involved.

Researchers analyzed data from 48 genetic studies, which included approximately 17,000 stroke patients and nearly 600,000 non-stroke controls. All participants were between the ages of 18 and 59. Their findings revealed a clear relationship between the gene responsible for the A1 blood subgroup, and early-onset stroke. "The number of people with early strokes is rising," senior author and vascular neurologist Steven Kittner from the University of Maryland said.

"These people are more likely to die from the life-threatening event, and survivors potentially face decades with disability. Despite this, there is little research on the causes of early strokes."

A genome-wide search revealed two locations strongly associated with an earlier risk of stroke. One of these locations coincided with the spot where genes for blood type sit. A second analysis of specific types of blood-type genes then found people whose genome coded for a variation of the A group had a 16 percent higher chance of a stroke before the age of 60, compared with a population of other blood types.

For those with a gene for group O1, the risk was lower by 12 percent.

The researchers noted, however, that the additional risk of stroke in people with type A blood is small, so there is no need for extra vigilance or screening in this group. "We still don't know why blood type A would confer a higher risk," said Kittner. "But it likely has something to do with blood-clotting factors like platelets and cells that line the blood vessels as well as other circulating proteins, all of which play a role in the development of blood clots."

 

[Lamb]

I'm O+ so looks like I'm good to go

I'm kidding of course! I'm going through some hormonal changes that are affecting my cholesterol levels and that's concerning me because I didn't anticipate it. Time to go over my daily foods to see what can be altered.