Prevent
A Stroke Today With These 4 Simple Lifestyle Changes: New York City Certified
Dietitian Teaches Clients to Take Control of Their Health
Contemplating the possibility of a stroke
is terrifying.
According to the American Stroke
Association, every 40 seconds someone suffers a stroke. In the time it will
take you to read this blog, approximately three or four people will have
experienced a stroke. (More alarming is that every 4 minutes, someone dies from
a stroke, making it the 5th leading cause of death in the United
States.)
Almost all of us know someone who has had a
stroke. Considering that 800,000 people in the US alone suffer from a stroke (www.cdd.gov/stroke) , annually, it’s not
surprising. Just seconds of a stroke can change our lives and the lives of the
ones we love dramatically … forever.
But when we replace terror with education
and take control of our health, we can prevent, treat, and beat a stroke www.strokeassociation.org .
May is stroke awareness month, and knowing
how to prevent strokes (as 80% are preventable) and recognizing when someone is
having a stroke are two ways I want to help educate and, hopefully, prevent you
or someone you love from experiencing a stroke. Moreover, just by sharing the
warning signs http://www.strokeassociation.org/STROKEORG/WarningSigns/Stroke-Warning-Signs-and-Symptoms_UCM_308528_SubHomePage.jsp
, and thinking F.A.S.T. (F.A.S.T.: Face drooping. Arm weakness. Speech difficulty. Time
to call 9-1-1.) you can act quicker, getting yourself or
someone you know or love the treatment she needs as soon as possible. Time is everything when someone suffers a
stroke.
As a certified dietitian in New York City,
many of my clients come to me because they want to take control of their lives
again. And they can. You can! There are things you can do, changes you can make
in your diet and lifestyle, to prevent a stroke (regardless of family
history!).
1. Lower Hypertension in as Little as Two weeks: Get heart healthy. http://www.maryjanedetroyer.com/best-nutritionist-personal-trainer-advice-healthy-heart/ : High blood pressure is the open door to stroke (doubling or quadrupling your chances http://www.health.harvard.edu/womens-health/8-things-you-can-do-to-prevent-a-stroke). Change your diet to the DASH http://www.maryjanedetroyer.com/high-blood-pressure/ diet, filled with vegetables, fruits, and other tasty options, which has been proven to lower blood pressure significantly in as little as two weeks. Learning to control hypertension through dietary changes can lower your risk by half!
2.
Cut Your Chances of Having a Stroke in Half: Quit Smoking and Drink in Moderation. It’s never too late, as the body’s ability to
mend and heal is phenomenal. Cigarettes thicken your blood and increase plaque
buildup in your arteries, accelerating clot formation. Within a year, the
excess risk of heart attack, stroke, and heart disease will plummet to less
than half of a non-smoker. As for
alcohol, studies have shown that one drink per day can actually help with
hypertension (think of those lovely French dinners with red wine.) But after
one drink, your risks skyrocket. So put away the cigarettes and keep drinking
to a minimum.
3.
Shave off Ten Pounds And Walk Your Way to Health: Stay fit. Exercise and keep your weight down. Right now, the
United States is in the midst of an obesity epidemic. By just losing ten
pounds, you can significantly lower your chance of stroke. (http://www.health.harvard.edu/womens-health/8-things-you-can-do-to-prevent-a-stroke
. Make small goals to get healthy.
Don’t focus on the scale or the numbers http://www.maryjanedetroyer.com/registered-nutritionist-certified-personal-trainer-bmi/
,instead focus on your health. Make movement a mindset http://www.maryjanedetroyer.com/12-nyc-personal-trainer-tips-to-stay-active-in-winter/.
Independent of helping you maintain a
healthy weight, exercise can lower blood pressure, increase the level of
high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and improve the overall health of blood
vessels and heart. Work your way up to exercising five days/week, thirty-forty
minutes each time.
4.
Reduce Your Risks Through Education and Screenings: Make sure you are checked for diabetes, heart irregularities. Get
your blood pressure checked. There are some things we can’t control: race, age,
gender, family history. But by being aware of having higher risks, we can make sure
we take extra care to make healthier choices and ask for stroke screenings when
we have a checkup.
Education is the first step toward
prevention. You can take control of your
life and reduce your chances of stroke in half by making some simple dietary
and exercise changes.
By making some changes in our lifestyle,
whether it be walking to the grocery store every day instead of driving, or
reducing our salt intake, we’re on the right path toward a healthier
heart. Today is a great day to take
control of your health and reduce your risk of suffering a stroke.
Websites for more information about
prevention and treatment:
American Stroke Association
National Stroke Association
http://www.stroke.org/about-us
http://www.stroke.org/about-us
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