Abstract
SummaryObesity and hyperinsulinemia are risk factors for stroke. We tested the hypothesis that caloric restriction, which reduces the incidence of age‐related obesity and metabolic syndrome, may represent an efficient and cost‐effective strategy for preventing stroke and its devastating consequences. To this end, we placed aged, obese Sprague‐Dawley aged rats on a calorie‐restricted diet for 8 weeks prior to the experimental infarction. Stroke in this animal model caused a progressive decrease in weight that reached a minimum at day 6 for the young rats, and at day 10 for the aged, ad libitum‐fed rats. However, in aged animals that were calorie‐restricted prior to stroke, body weight did not decrease after stroke, but we noted accelerated body weight gain shortly thereafter starting at day 5 poststroke. Moreover, calorie‐restricted aged animals showed improved behavioral recovery in tasks requiring complex sensorimotor skills, or in tasks requiring cutaneous sensitivity and sensorimotor integration or spatial memory. Likewise, calorie‐restricted aged rats showed significant poststroke increases in serum glucose, insulin, and IGF1 levels, as well as CR‐specific changes in the expression of gene transcripts involved in glycogen metabolism, IGF signaling, apoptosis, arteriogenesis, and hypoxia. In conclusion, our study shows that recovery from stroke is enhanced in aged rats by a dietary regimen that reduces body weight prior to infarct.
Highlights
Stroke represents a potentially lethal condition with devastating effects for patients and their families
There was a significant effect of CR on aged animals weight (F = 57.18, P < 0.0001), and the weights changed significantly over time (F = 39.09, P < 0.0001); in addition, there was a significant CR 9 time interaction (F = 40.73, P < 0.0001)
It is widely accepted that both aging and obesity are risk factors for ischemic stroke
Summary
Stroke represents a potentially lethal condition with devastating effects for patients and their families. Clinical studies have indicated that obesity is characterized by a body mass index (BMI) of at least 30 kg mÀ2, while those above this limit are labeled as overweight. It seems that for overweight and obese patients, every 5 kg mÀ2 is associated with 40% increased mortality if the patient develops any type of stroke (Goldstein et al, 2011). The same medical organization recommends a simple rule termed ‘Life’s simple 70 for preventing cardiovascular events including stroke This includes maintaining normal weight, glucose, blood pressure, and cholesterol, being physically active, nonsmoking, and eating a healthy nutritious diet. Obesity is never described as a single abnormality as it by itself leads to other pathological complications such as hypertension, diabetes, and hypercholesterolemia (Towfighi & Ovbiagele, 2009; Strazzullo et al, 2010; Li et al, 2013)
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