Staving off stroke

While diseases such as heart disease and breast cancer seem to get the bulk of attention nowadays, don’t forget about the third leading cause of death in this country and the No. 1 cause of disability: stroke.

      Eighty percent of strokes are preventable simply by lowering risk factors, according to the National Stroke Association. And risk factors for stroke are often intertwined, so treating one of them can often positively affect another. For example, quitting smoking can bring down blood pressure. You can do a number of things to reduce your stroke risk:

      • Eat your fruits and veggies. Experts recommend five or more servings a day. You should also be getting at least six servings of grains a day, eating fish like albacore tuna and salmon twice a week and including fat-free dairy products, beans, lean meats and skinless poultry into your everyday diet. The name of the game is to limit foods high in saturated fats, trans fats, cholesterol and calories, which, in turn, can lower your blood cholesterol. High cholesterol is a risk factor for stroke.

      • Move, move, move. Lace up your shoes and hit the pavement for at least 30 minutes on most or all days. If you need to lose weight, increase that activity time to at least 60 minutes.

      • Butt out. Nicotine and carbon monoxide damage your cardiovascular system, so talk with your healthcare provider today about quit–smoking aids such as patches and medications.

      • Control your diabetes. Having diabetes increases your stroke risk, but uncontrolled diabetes puts you at an even greater risk. Make sure to keep your blood sugar levels under control and visit regularly with your healthcare provider to stay on top of the disease.

      Advancing age, a family history, being male, being of African–American descent and having had a prior stroke are all risk factors you can’t control. But by taking the measures listed above, you can help reduce your risks and help prevent yourself from becoming a statistic.

Stroke and younger women
      More than 100,000 women under 65 will have a stroke in this country this year, according to the American Stroke Association. Lesser-known stroke risk factors for younger women include :
      • migraines
      • menopausal and other hormone therapy
      • autoimmune diseases such as type 1 diabetes or lupus
      • clotting disorders

Look for the signs
      Knowing the symptoms of stroke can allow you to get the help you need fast and reduce damage. That’s why the American Academy of Neurology, the American College of Emergency Physicians and the American Stroke Association have teamed up to create “Give Me 5: Walk, Talk, Reach, See, Feel”—an easy–to–remember checklist of stroke signs:
       1. Walk—Is your balance off?
       2. Talk—Is your speech slurred or face droopy?
       3. Reach—Is one side of the body weak or numb?
       4. See—Is your vision all or partly lost?
       5. Feel—Is your headache severe?