New research has suggested that having occasional blood pressure-with episodes of hypertension-might render you at risk of stroke, the Associated Press reports.

''We have shown that it is variations in people's blood pressure rather than the average level that predicts stroke most powerfully," posts study lead author Peter Rothwell, MD, professor of clinical neurology at the Stroke Prevention Research Unit, John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, England.

As a part of the study, the team made a quantitative evaluation of blood pressure in 8,000 people who previously had a heart attack.

According to the AP, patients whose blood pressure posted instability possessed a risk of stroke six times compared to those with stable high blood pressure.

The researchers reported to completely focus on the systolic blood pressure reading, the top number in the measurement, outlining the pressure when the heart contracts while pumping blood.

In addition, a new assessment made by a National Institutes of Health panel, revealed that pregnant women should once again be granted the option of having a vaginal birth after a cesarean, U. S. News's Deborah Kotz reports.