Strokes can occur without warning and can change or significantly reduce your quality of life in the blink of an eye.
If you are among the 60 percent of persons who survived a stroke, you are among those who still have the opportunity to improve your quality of life and overall health.
If, like me, you have not suffered a stroke, let's see how we can help reduce our risks.
What causes strokes?
A stroke can occur when the arteries become too hard or narrow. When this happens, it cuts off the supply of oxygenated blood to the brain.
Clots and accumulated plaque on the artery walls can separate from areas in the circulatory system, travel to the arteries in the brain and cause a blockage.
That part of the brain will die from lack of oxygen, by causing a blow-out or hemorrhage (bleeding in the brain). This occurrence is known as a stroke.
What are the risk factors for strokes?
Risk factors that may cause a stroke will include:
Overly high or uncontrolled blood pressure: persons who suffer from hypertension are 8 times more likely to get a stroke than persons who enjoy normal blood pressure levels.
- An irregular heartbeat can also increase your chances of stroke by at least 6 times.
- Diabetes
- Obesity
- Lack of exercise
- smoking
- High Triglyceride levels (too much fat in the blood)
- High cholesterol
What are the signs of a stroke?
Blackouts are one of the early warning signs of an impending stroke.
They can appear, then go away in less than 1 day, and may last for a few seconds each time. Continual blackouts may also bring on a heart attack.
How do I help prevent or reduce strokes?
1. Control your blood pressure
If you suffer from heart disease, diabetes, or hypertension, you need to monitor your blood pressure regularly.
2. Control your weight
Reducing body weight helps you eliminate diabetes, hypertension and a heart attack.
3. Quit smoking
Of every 6 persons who die of strokes, one of them is a smoker.
Smoking can help increase your blood pressure and heart rate.
The nicotine can also help narrow and harden the artery walls and increase your chances of blood clots. It places increased pressure on the heart and may cause a stroke or heart attack.
4. Exercise regularly
Exercise is good for the heart, brain and every organ in the body. It helps control your weight, improves the circulation and promotes better overall health and well-being.
5. Watch what you eat
Practice eating foods high in fiber and low in fat and cholesterol. Studies show that reducing your fat intake by at least 15 percent can help protect your arteries from plaque buildup.
6. Shake the salt habit
Although salt is a natural preservative, using more salt than is needed is one of the leading causes of hypertension worldwide.
- Retrain your taste buds by preparing your foods with less salt.
- Read food labels and know how much salt is added to your foods: Potato chips, fast foods, sauces, soups, salted nuts, frozen foods, etc. all have high levels of salt. For example, there are 800 mgs. of salt in a cheeseburger and 2,000 mgs. of salt in a 3-piece chicken dinner.
- Cook with more fresh herbs to help reduce salt in food preparation.
Lemon juice is also an excellent alternative to salt where it can be used in cooking. Include these ingredients in your cooking to add more flavor and help reduce the need to add salt.
- Aim to use no more than 1 teaspoon of salt per day (4,000 mg.)
While fresh herbs are sometimes better, you can mix and match these ingredients to make your own dried rubs and seasoning blends:
- Garlic (fresh and dehydrated)
- Cumin
- Cinnamon
- Ginger
- Bay leaves
- Tarragon
- Sage
- Marjoram
- Oregano
- Basil
- Rosemary
- Fennel
- Coriander
- Clove
- Dill
- Orange zest
- Celery seeds
- Turmeric
- Red and green pepper flakes
- Paprika
- Dehydrated onion flakes and onion powder