While some risk factors cannot be controlled - such as age, gender, and family history of stroke - there are many things you can do to reduce the possibility of stroke. We all want to avoid a stroke. A hard look at statistics reveals the devastating of this potential killer. Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the United States; where over 143,579 die each year. The risk of having a stroke more than double each decade after age fifty-five. A stroke can take your life, or just ravage your quality of life, since it affects the way you talk, move, think, and how you eat and drink. It even affect emotions and the way you can interact with those you love.
Sadly, researchers have discovered that death rates from stroke differs in percentage and higher from state to states. Avoiding the cultural trap if unhealthy behaviors is crucial if you live in these states. This trap includes an unhealthy diet and smoking, among other factors. Smoking and that whole class of unhealthy behaviors maybe more common in those areas. Some are tobacco producing states, and there are places where smoking is more common, and high blood pressure and diabetes are higher.
Diet and genetics cam certainly play a role; genetics can interact with nutrition and change the way the genes are expressed. Food like fried chicken, fried vegetables, fried potatoes, and fried everything else may contribute to the problem. Also lifestyle.... exercise and healthy behaviors aren't as common. The bottom line of this study is that you can live in the stroke belt and not be anymore likely to suffer a stroke if you make an effort to live a healthy lifestyle.
For much of the twentieth century, little was know about the dangers of high cholesterol, lack of exercise, and even smoking, and most families were not what today we call "health conscious".
Prevention is the place to focus, so we need to learn about the risk factors and aggressively adhere to those factors that we can control. Obviously, we can't control our gender, race, and family history. We can't control our age and present medical history. For example, if a person has had a heart attack or suffers from sleep apnea or atrial fibrillation (a condition in which the heart beats abnormally), they are at higher risk for stroke. Risk increases for everyone after fifty-five. And recently, women have edged ahead of men in number of strokes. The death rate for women from stroke is twice that of breast cancer. For those who have any of these risk factors, it is even more imperative to alter those that can be controlled.
Seven important risk factors are under your control, of which we have mentioned healthy diet, exercise, and not smoking. The other four are: present health conditions, taking hormones, use of illicit drugs or excessive alcohol, and obesity:
* If you have any chronic diseases such as high blood pressure, diabetes or high cholesterol, be especially vigilant managing them well. Carefully follow your doctor's recommendation for medication, diet, and exercise, who make a world of difference.
*Taking hormones replacement therapy (HRT) during menopause or using birth control pills can increase the risk of a blood clot.
* Illicit drugs or excessive alcohol use is linked to high incidence of stroke fir both men and women.
* Obesity increases your risk of stroke, so it is crucial that you work with your doctor to get your weight into a healthy range. Next time and every time, chouse the salad versus the "bloomin'onion" and the veggie medley versus the french fries. One by one, these choices add up.
Acknowledgements
DAVID B. BIEBEL, DMIN, his website at: https://www.crosshearthealth.com
JAMES E. DILL, MD,
AND BOBBIE DILL, RN
Find this article interesting? Please comment with your experience and don't forget to share with friends using all our social media handles below. You can also subscribe to receive new blog updates. Thanks
Post a Comment