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Stroke is the third biggest killer in the United States. Nearly 800,000 people suffer a stroke every year, and the consequences can be dire, with 144,000 people dying from the condition annually and many more suffering serious disabilities and other health issues as a result of stroke.

Strokes take place when the flow of blood to the brain is interrupted or when a blood vessel in the brain either leaks or bursts. It is important if you want to avoid becoming a stroke victim, that you know the risk factors that could make you vulnerable.

There are medical procedures and devices such as a watchman implant, that can reduce the risk of a stroke. More information on implants can be found at https://cvgcares.com/services/watchman-implant-procedure/, however, there are natural ways you can use to manage and reduce your risk of stroke before resorting to any medical procedures and devices

Here are the main things that could put you at risk of a stroke:

Eating Lots of Fatty Foods

Eating lots of fried, fatty foods and red meat doesn’t only increase your chances of a heart attack, it can be a factor in causing strokes too. According to the American Stroke Association, researchers have found that women who are postmenopausal and who eat a diet high in fat, are 40 percent more likely to suffer a stroke than those who typically eat a low-fat diet. Trans fats, in particular, are thought to increase the risk of stroke, and they are found in a huge number of processed foods like chips, pastries, cookies and crackers.

If you want to cut your risk of stroke, therefore, you must clean up your diet, avoid processed foods and according to some researchers, eat a Mediterranean diet, which is high in vegetables, olive oil, whole grains fish, and seeds, with only small amounts of red meat and sweet treats.

Being Single

A study carried out by an Israeli university found that men who were married by the time they reached middle age were 64 percent less likely to die of a stroke within the following 34 years than those who were single, taking into account other risk factors. So, if you’re still single, you might want to think about tying the knot if you want to avoid a serious stroke!

Atrial Fibrillation

Atrial Fibrillation is a condition in which the heart beats at irregular intervals. It is a sign that your heart is not pumping at optimum levels as it should. You can hear it at AbbottEP.com if you are worried it could be something you suffer from. Because atrial fibrillation can cause blood clots in the heart, they can increase your risk of stroke, which is why, if you are experiencing any of the tell-tale signs of afib, such as palpitations, you should get yourself checked out immediately.

Unhappiness

University of Texas researchers reported that older people who were more positive in mood, attitude and outlook were less likely to suffer from a stroke and even a small increase in the happiness levels could make the distance. In fact, for every step further up the happiness scale men got, their risk of stroke would drop by 41 percent, while women experienced an 18 percent drop for each step up the scale they moved.

So, try your best to be happy and think positively to cut your risk of stroke. If this is something that is difficult, do your best to do the things happy people are more likely to do, such as exercising, eating well and socializing, as well as seeking medical care, and you could stave off a stroke too.

Obesity

Obesity is a risk factor in so many illnesses and diseases, and stroke is no exception. You can find out more about obesity at CDC.Gov, and it might be wise to do so because researchers at the University of Minnesota who followed 13,000 American citizens for a period of 19 years discovered that the risk of stroke for obese people with a body mass index in the highest bracket, was between 1.43 and 2.12 times higher than those with a BMI in the lowest bracket. Obesity puts such a strain on the system and caused illnesses like diabetes and high blood pressure that having a stroke when you’re so heavy is very likely as you age. Do something about it now, and you will dramatically cut your risk level.

Smoking

According to the American Heart Association, smoking will double your risk of having a stroke, but if you quit smoking, even if you’ve been a heavy smoker for many years, you can cut your risk back to that of the average non-smoker simply by giving up. In fact, one study found that within five years of giving up there was no difference in the rate of strokes experienced by non-smokers and ex-smokers, which has to be an incentive to finally give up those cigarettes. Afterall, it won’t just be your heart that benefits – your whole body will get a boost and you’ll cut your risk of cancer too!

Genetic Factors

Sadly, some of the risk factors for stroke are out of your control. For example, if you are an African-American, your chances of having a stroke are twice that of your white friends and neighbors. Not only that, but black people have a much higher stroke-related death rate than whites. This could be partially explained by the fact that the black population is more likely to suffer from high blood pressure and diabetes than the general population.

Some studies have also found that women between the ages of 35 band 64 are nearly three times more likely to have a stroke than their male peers, perhaps because women tend to have more fat around the abdomen – a risk factor for stroke – than men of the same age who carry fat differently.

Being from the South

Sadly, being born and raised in the southeast of the United States, in places like Georgia, Arkansas, and Alabama gives you an increased risk of having a stroke when you’re older, even if you no longer live in the area.

One study published in the Journal of Neurology back in 2009 found that blacks who were born in the so-called southeastern ‘Stoke Belt’ were 22 percent more likely to have a stroke than the same demographic from other areas. Whites from the stroke belt were 30 percent more likely to suffer a stroke.  It is believed that this increased risk factor could be down to a range of things including bad diets, smoking and higher rates of obesity.

Although you can’t change genetic factors or the place you were born and raised, you can still work to cut your risk some by living a healthy lifestyle, monitoring your health, and avoiding too many vices.

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Let’s face it: most of us would like to have super senses that would allow us to see in the dark or hear what our colleagues are saying about us from across a crowded room. But thanks to our lifestyles, many of us end up losing our senses (literally) as we get older.

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Don’t take your senses for granted. Take care of your eyes, ears, nose, mouth and hands, and they’ll serve you faithfully for years to come. Here’s how to sharpen, not lose, your senses.

Dry Eyes

Dry eyes are a leading cause of eye inflammation which can result in problems with your sight later on in life. Scientists believe that dry eyes are the result of falling hormone production as you get older. Lower hormone production leads to fewer tears which lead to greater levels of inflammation. The result of this, according to Robert Latkany, the director of a dry eye clinic, is reduced vision, blurriness and burning eyes. Not good.

However, Latkany has some advice on how to prevent it. He says that people who eat plenty of omega-3 oils, whether in the form of fish, flaxseed or capsules, will keep their eyes moist and supple. If you’ve already got dry eyes, then he recommends supplementing your omega-3 regime with dry eye drops, like Restasis. These drops stimulate the tear glands to produce more tears, keeping the eyes healthy.

Cataracts

According to estimates by the website Prevention, more than 50 percent of people will develop cataracts by the age of 80. However, the risk of developing them begins way before you reach old age. Starting in your 40s, your risk of developing cataracts increases.

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You might not think that there’s a lot that you can do to prevent cataracts, but recent research by Tufts University seems promising. They found that people who took a vitamin C supplement for ten years had much lower cataract risk – having 60 percent fewer cataracts than the group who did not take the supplement.

Tufts also recommend that people avoid prolonged sun exposure and that they shun smoking, both of which produce lots of free radicals which can ultimately harm the eyes.

Even if you’ve already got cataracts, all is not lost. These days it’s possible to have surgery to remove and fix a clouded lens, restoring your vision to its former glory.

Faded Smell

Over time, your sense of smell, like the other senses in your body, can fade. According to estimates, around half of people over the age of 65 will report a faded sense of smell. With aging, the receptors in the nose that detect smell die off, leaving you with fewer receptors every year.

There are a couple of ways you can guard yourself against losing your sense of smell. One is to minimize your exposure to household chemicals, and the other is to remove yourself from smoky environments. Smoke, household chemicals, and insecticides can damage the nasal membrane and leave people without such an excellent sense of smell.

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Richard Doty, a doctor with a Ph.D. at the University of Pennsylvania has also found evidence that smelling things with a strong smell can help retain your sense of smell for longer. Apparently, smelling things like fresh lavender increases nerve cell activation in the nose which helps more receptors stick around as you get older.

If you’ve lost your sense of smell, Doty says not to give up. You may be able to bring it back, either by getting rid of any blockages or by sniffing strong scents a couple of times a day.

Gradual Hearing Loss

There’s a hearing loss condition called presbycusis that can start as early as your 40s. Usually, this develops either because you have a history of listening to loud noises (for instance, if you were a DJ in your youth) or you suffer from heart disease. Both heart disease and a history of loud noises can damage sound-detecting cells and cause you to have fewer of them as you age. Getting a hearing test is the first part of the solution, especially if you think you’ve experienced damage to the inner part of your ear. Unfortunately, hearing loss is difficult to reverse which means that if you can’t hear very well at the moment, you might want to talk to your doctor about getting a hearing aid.

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To prevent your hearing loss accelerating, don’t expose yourself to loud noises (of more than 85 decibels) for extended periods of time. Limit your time listening to your iPod on high volume to less than 90 minutes per day.

Loss Of Sensation

Can you lose your sense of touch? Well, according to science, you can as you age. Your sense of touch is partially transmitted by the elasticity of your skin. The more elastic it is, the more nerve cells are recruited around the area where your skin is being pinched or pressed. But with age, that elasticity can fade, and the number of receptors in our skin can fall.

It should be noted that there are a couple of medications that can destroy your sense of touch. One is called Cardene, a drug designed to reduce blood pressure. Cardene can lead to a dull sense of touch, almost like the skin is numb, but it’s a rare side effect.

As per usual, the best way to prevent a loss of sensation is to live a heart-healthy lifestyle. Living a heart-healthy lifestyle helps to keep all the capillaries that supply your nerve endings healthy, providing them with the nutrients that they need to survive. To keep your respiratory system healthy, stop smoking, avoid saturated fats in animal products and start taking a B12 supplement. B12 has been shown to help people hold onto sensation in their skin.

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The bad news is that once a nerve cell dies, it can’t be brought back to life. However, taking drugs like aspirin can increase the width of blood vessels, improving your circulation and increasing the stimulation of the bottom layer of skin. If you experience a sudden loss of sensation, it could be the result of a stroke.

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