If you or a loved one has experienced a stroke, you already know how scary it is and may know about the permanent disability or loss of life which can result. Knowing your risk factors for stroke can help you to change the things you have control over and reduce your future risk.
There are some stroke risk factors over which you don’t have any control. Age, family history of stroke, being African American, being a woman, and history of stroke all add to risk. Knowing if you have any of these risk factors is useful as it can help motivate you to address the things that you can work on.
Elevated blood pressure is the the most significant controllable risk factor. Having it checked at your doctor’s office or a pharmacy regularly - and addressing it if it is high - markedly lowers your risk of stroke. Your doctor can help you address this issue.
Smoking is another major risk factor. The chemicals introduced into your body by smoking damage blood vessels and increase the risk for stroke. Talk to your doctor about quitting smoking - this will reduce your risk of stroke as well as a host of other diseases.
Diabetes is also an independent risk factor for stroke. If you have diabetes, work with your doctor to get your blood sugar in control. Like quitting smoking, getting diabetes under control has multiple health benefits, including lowering the risk of stroke.
High levels of cholesterol in the blood also increase stroke risk. Your doctor can check those levels and, if necessary, recommend dietary changes or medication to lower your risk.
Physical inactivity and obesity also increase risk of stroke. Try to be as active as possible daily, of course in consultation with your doctor if increasing activity could pose a risk for you of some sort. Even a few minutes of daily activity helps to lower risk.
There also are specific medical conditions such as carotid artery disease, atrial fibrillation, heart valve disease, and several others which should be addressed in consultation with your doctor to lower your risk if you have them.
So, although stroke is scary to think about at least there is something you can do to lower your risk - take today as an opportunity to become more active and address any of the other risk factors above!
