Fatal stroke decline tallies with quitting cigarettes

A possible link between a fatal form of stroke and smoking has been discovered by scientists in Finland.

The number of people who suffered a subarachnoid haemorrhage — the most lethal stroke — tallied with a decline in smoking numbers.

Between 1998 and 2012, the number of people who smoked plunged 30% among 15- to 64-year-olds in the country.

During this time, cases of the killer stroke fell 45% among women under 50 and 38% among men under 50, and by 16% among women over 50 and 26% among men over 50.

Scientists could not establish whether the change in smoking habits caused the drop, but it was “highly likely” Finnish tobacco policies played a role.

A British charity said the findings were a “wake-up call” to smokers. Finland has slashed smoking numbers through a series of public health campaigns and legislative action against the sale of tobacco and its use in public.

Jaakko Kaprio, of the University of Helsinki, said the findings, which were published in the journal, Neurology, said: “It is extraordinary for the incidence of any cardiovascular disease to decrease so rapidly at the population level in such a short time.

“Even though we cannot demonstrate a direct causation in nationwide studies, it is highly likely that the national tobacco policies in Finland have contributed to the decline in the incidence of this type of severe brain haemorrhage.”

British health charity Ash said the findings should motivate smokers to quit.

Chief executive Deborah Arnott said: “The Finnish study is a wake-up call to smokers.”