One in four people worldwide will have a stroke. Read that again. One in four people will have a stroke. Someone in the United States has a stroke every 40 seconds. Every four minutes, someone will die from stroke. Staggering statistics that do not discriminate.

Strokes can affect anyone, at any age. In fact, stroke is a top five killer and a leading cause of disability in the United States.

Some factors are out of your control, like family history. However, there is a silver lining. Strokes can be preventable, treatable and even beatable.

• High blood pressure, or hypertension, is the leading cause of stroke and the most significant controllable risk factor. Normal blood pressure is 120/80. Nearly half of all adults in the U.S. have high blood pressure.

• Smoking damages blood vessels, leading to blockages and stroke. Quit smoking and avoid second-hand smoke whenever possible.

• Having diabetes more than doubles one's risk of stroke. Every two minutes, an adult with diabetes in the U.S. is hospitalized with a stroke which is why it is important to control your blood sugar. Many people with diabetes also have high blood pressure, high blood cholesterol and are overweight — increasing their risk even more. While diabetes is treatable, the presence of the disease still increases your risk of stroke.

• Diets high in saturated fat, trans fat and cholesterol can raise cholesterol levels and in turn – blocked arteries. If an artery leading to the brain becomes blocked or throws a clot, a stroke can occur. Diets high in sodium can increase blood pressure. Health experts suggest adding fruits and vegetables to help reduce your stroke risk.

• Move more, sit less. Physical inactivity can increase your risk of stroke, heart disease, obesity, high blood press, high cholesterol and diabetes. For adults, try fitting in at least 150 minutes (2.5) hours of heart-pumping physical activity per week. For children, physical activity will depend on the age – but should be at least three days per week.

Stroke Risk Factors You CAN'T Control

Age

• Anyone can have a stroke at any age – even babies and children; however, your chances increase with age for males and females.

• You are at greater risk of having a stroke if a close family member has had one, especially before reaching the age 65. 

• African Americans have a much higher risk of dying from a stroke than Caucasians due to higher risks of high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity. On the contrary, Hispanics and Latinos are in a lower risk category.

• Women have more strokes than men. Strokes also kill more women than men. Some factors that may play important roles include pregnancy, history of preeclampsia/eclampsia, oral contraceptive use and post-menopausal hormone therapy.

• If you have had a stroke or heart attack before, you are at a much higher risk of having another one. A heart attack is caused by plaque buildup that blocks blood vessels to the heart. Similarly, most strokes are caused by a buildup of plaque that cause blockages in the brain.
• If you have had one or more transient ischemic attacks, or TIAs, you are nearly 10 times more likely to have a stroke than someone of the same age and sex who hasn't. TIAs are smaller, temporary blockages in the brain that can produce milder forms of stroke-like symptoms but may not leave lasting damage.
• If you happen to have a stroke, timing is everything. During a stroke, nearly 120 million brain cells die every hour.

Use the letters F.A.S.T. to spot the warning signs and symptoms of stroke and know when to call 911.

F - Face Drooping

• Does one side of the face droop or is it numb? Ask the person to smile. Is the person's smile uneven?

A – Arm Weakness

• Is one arm weak or numb? Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?

S – Speech

• Is speech slurred? Is the person unable to speak or hard to understand.? Ask the person to repeat a simple sentence.

T – Time to Call 9-1-1. 

• If the person shows any of these symptoms, even if the symptoms go away, call 9-1-1 and get them to the hospital immediately.

Union Hospital has received the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association's Get With The Guidelines®-Stroke Gold Plus Quality Achievement Award. The award recognizes the hospital's commitment to ensuring stroke patients receive the most appropriate treatment according to nationally recognized, research-based guidelines based on the latest scientific evidence.

Union Hospital additionally received the Association's Target: StrokeSM Honor Roll Elite award. To qualify for this recognition, hospitals must meet quality measures developed to reduce the time between the patient's arrival at the hospital and treatment with the clot-buster tissue plasminogen activator, or tPA, the only drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat ischemic stroke.

Union Hospital has also met specific scientific guidelines as a Primary Stroke Center, featuring a comprehensive system for rapid diagnosis and treatment of stroke patients admitted to the emergency department.

Please be sure to talk to your primary care provider to determine your stroke risks.

Healthier, together.