World Stroke Day 2023: 10 Stroke Prevention Tips That Will Help You Live a Longer, Healthier Life

Can stroke be prevented? Yes, here are 10 ways to lower your risk of a stroke death.

World Stroke Day is annually observed on October 29 to create awareness amongst people about the early signs and symptoms to look out for stroke. This year the theme of World Stroke Day 2023 is ''Together we can be #GreaterThan stroke''. Today, stroke is the second leading cause of death in India. A stroke can affect you in different ways, depending on which part of the brain is affected. It can be due to inadequate blood supply. This can affect your speech, as well as the way you think and move. It causes permanent disabilities like paralysis and coma; hence it is important to administer medical help to the patient at the earliest.

In this article, Dr. Vinodh Kumar S, MBBS, MD (Internal Medicine), Consultant Physican and Diabetologist, tells us more about how easily one can prevent a life-threatening condition like a stroke from hitting them.

Stroke Prevention: Don't Ignore These Early Signs of Stroke

It is important for people to note down the signs and symptoms of stroke, some of the most common signs and symptoms include severe headaches, numbness in the body especially on the face, leg, and one side of the body, and loss of vision; sometimes the vision is black and blurry, inability to understand what someone is saying, confusion or trouble speaking or understanding. Some other symptoms such as trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance, paralysis, nausea, and vomiting also indicate that the person is dealing with stroke issues.

How to Lower Your Risk of Stroke: 10 Simple Tips That Make a Big Difference

In most cases, early treatment with medication like tPA (clot buster) can help in reducing brain damage. An emergency procedure known as thrombectomy can help in eliminating blood clots from a vein or artery which will help to treat stroke. In addition, blood thinners like aspirin and other antiplatelets, anticoagulants, cholesterol-lowering statins, and blood pressure medicines are advised to reduce the risk of clots and to save patients from stroke arising due to high blood pressure or cholesterol.

Over the years, researchers found out the factors that led to stroke, some of these you can't change, like your age (the likelihood of stroke increases with age), gender (women are more likely to have a stroke than men), and race or ethnicity, but there are external factors which can be controlled

1. Know and control your blood pressure.
2. Dont smoke
3. Keep healthy weight
4. Indulge in adequate Physical activity
5. Adopt a healthy diet
6. Be aggressive about treating a transient ischemic attack (TIA, or mini-stroke).
7. Treat circulatory problems like peripheral artery disease, sickle cell disease, or severe anemia.
8. Know and control your blood sugar and cholesterol.
9. Avoid alcohol
10. Exercise regularly to stay fit and active

Disclaimer: The home remedies given above are just some suggestions and tips to manage the condition. Do not ignore the symptoms if they persist for a long time. Make sure you consult a doctor before making any changes to your diet.