Over 30? Eating More of This Could Reduce Long-Term Stroke Risk, Found New Study
The National Institutes of Health has reported that scientists first investigated the connection between gut health and brain health in the 18th Century. However only recently have modern researchers begun to unearth the full impact of the gut-brain axis.
Increasingly, those researchers are zeroing in on how the gut microbiome, home to trillions of bacteria, can influence brain function. As we now understand, a complex network of nerves bridges the gastrointestinal tract to the central nervous system, allowing for two-way communication between these important parts of the body. This is why the saying “gut feeling” is quite literal, in a scientific sense.
Now, new research suggests that in some adults, improving gut health with the help of probiotics could be an effective way to protect the brain. One study in particular, published February 2025 in the journal Food & Function, suggests increasing your gut microbiota diversity—the number of good gut bacteria in your digestive tract—could meaningfully reduce your long-term risk of stroke.
To understand the link between gut health and stroke risk, two medical doctors at Shanghai’s Fudan University drew on previously collected data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). In total, they reviewed the demographic and dietary information of 48,677 subjects aged 20 and over, and indexed their diets based on the number of gut-friendly foods they ate. Foods that would have increased a person’s score included:
