Stroke is one of the nation's top healthcare concerns. Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the U.S. and the leading cause of functional impairments. It is estimated that there are more than 700,000 incident strokes in the U.S per year, with about 160,000 deaths annually linked to stroke. The elderly, men, African Americans, and people with a family history of stroke may have a higher stroke risk. Other risk factors include high blood pressure, cigarette smoke exposure, heart disease, high cholesterol levels, postmenopausal hormone therapy, poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, obesity, sleep apnea, sickle cell disease, and low birth weight. Now the American Heart Association (AHA) and the American Stroke Association (ASA) have recently issued new guidelines for stroke prevention
To help you lower your stroke risk, the AHA/ASA recommends the following:
1. Keep high blood pressure under control.
2. High blood pressure patients should increase potassium intake to 4.7 grams daily and reduce sodium intake to less than 2.3 grams daily.
3. Do not smoke and avoid exposure to smoke.
4. Exercise regularly.
5. Treat medical conditions that may cause stroke including diabetes and heart disease.
6. Diabetic patients should lower "bad" LDL cholesterol with statin drugs.
7. People with genetic causes of stroke should consider genetic counseling.
8. Limit alcohol intake to two drinks daily for men and one drink daily for women. Do not take illegal drugs.
9. Women at high risk for stroke should discuss with their physicians about taking a low-dose aspirin. The stroke data is less conclusive for men.
10. Women should not prevent stroke with postmenopausal hormone therapy.
REFERENCES:
1. Goldstein LB et al. Primary prevention of ischemic stroke: a guideline from the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Stroke Council: cosponsored by the Atherosclerotic Peripheral Vascular Disease Interdisciplinary Working Group; Cardiovascular Nursing Council; Clinical Cardiology Council; Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Metabolism Council; and the Quality of Care and Outcomes Research Interdisciplinary Working Group. Circulation 2006 Jun 20;113(24):e873-923.
Posted by Elaine Gavalas on September 21, 2006 02:10 PM
