Increasing intake of different types of vitamin B may better prevent cardiovascular-related diseases, according to findings published in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association.

During a study, a team of researchers surveyed more than 58,500 people aged 40 to 70 years about their eating habits, and examined the collected information. After 14 years of follow-ups, the investigators found that more than 900 of the participants had died from strokes, a total of 424 from heart disease and 2,087 had passed away because of other heart-related diseases.

The investigators then took data from the questionnaires and divided the individuals into five groups based on their variance of vitamin intake that including folate, vitamin B-6 and B-12.

The results showed that women with the highest intake of folate and B-6 were less likely to suffer from strokes, heart disease and other cardiovascular illnesses as opposed to female participants with lower intake of these B vitamins. Also, the team found that men who consumed foods with high levels of folate and B-6 had a lower risk of dying from heart failure.

In 2006, approximately 81.1 million people in the U.S. were diagnosed with at least one type of cardiovascular disease, including a total of 6.4 million suffering from strokes, according to the American Heart Association.