By the time you’re done reading this, approximately five people will have had a stroke in the United States; every 40 seconds to be exact. With frequency like that, it is imperative to know the risks so that you can take the necessary preventative measures.
Here are a few things to keep an eye on in order to keep the people that you love safe and healthy:
Unavoidable Risks
- Age: Did you know that after the age of 55, the chances of having a stroke doubles every decade thereafter? With a statistic like that, age puts some of the people that we love the most (such as our loving parents) at a significant risk.
- Family History: If someone in the family, whether a parent, grandparent, or sibling, has experienced a stroke in the past, there is a greater risk for future strokes within the family. Often times, hereditary instances of stroke can be traced back to shared gene mutations that can lead to damage of blood vessels in the brain.
- Gender: Each year in the United States, women are reported to have more strokes than men. This pattern can more than likely be traced back to gender specific medical occurrences that may take place throughout the course of a woman’s life; birth control pills, pregnancy, post-menopausal hormone therapy, etc.
- Transient Ischemic Attacks (TIA’s): TIA’s are smaller strokes that typically exhibit similar symptoms, but leave no lasting damage. These “warning” strokes can often serve to foreshadow that someone is perhaps at risk for a larger, more detrimental stroke. If your parents, or someone you love, seems to have experienced similar symptoms to that of a stroke, seek medical attention immediately to explore their options.
Avoidable Risks
- High Blood Pressure: Not only has high blood pressure been determined to be the highest cause of stroke, but it is believed that lower blood pressure leads to a higher survival rate.
- Cigarette Smoking: The chemicals in cigarettes (nicotine and carbon monoxide) have proved to correlate directly with the deterioration of a healthy cardiovascular system. If your parents are getting older and are still lighting up, it may be beneficial to help them wean off smoking.
- Heart/Artery Diseases and Disorders: If your loved one has been diagnosed with any diseases or disorders that have any direct impact on the health of the heart or blood flow, they are automatically at higher risk for a stroke.
Strokes are the number five cause of death in the United States and can be deadly or absolutely devastating to someone’s functionality. Sometimes risks for strokes are inevitable and part of your DNA, but often times you can help to prevent them.
Taking precautions like consistent exercise and healthy dieting and habits can lead to a healthier cardiovascular system, and in turn eliminate a lot of risk for strokes.
At Bluebird Homecare, our entire staff is trained to recognize and manage the risks of strokes through our in-home care. We also provide meal preparation services to help keep your family in a safe and healthy living environment.
Contact Bluebird Homecare to learn more about our services and how we can help restore peace of mind to you and your family.
