The Stroke Association issues new advice

More than 600,000 Americans are expected to experience their first stroke this year – but up to 80% of these incidents are preventable.

The American Stroke Association issued updated advice on Monday urging health care workers to control stroke risk factors such as high blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, high blood sugar and obesity.

“The most effective way to reduce the occurrence of a stroke and stroke-related death is to prevent the first stroke—referred to as primary prevention,” said Dr. Cheryl D. Bushnell, chair of the ASA guideline writing group.

“Some populations have a high risk for stroke,” she continued, “whether due to genetics, lifestyle, biological factors, and/or social determinants of health, and in some cases, people don’t get adequate screening for identify their risk.

A stroke occurs when blood flow to the brain is blocked or when a blood vessel bursts and bleeds into the brain.

Stroke was the fourth leading cause of death in the US last year, accounting for 162,600 deaths, according to preliminary data.

The updated ASA recommendations – which replace the 2014 guidelines – encourage adults to follow the Mediterranean diet regardless of stroke risk. The plant-based eating plan emphasizes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and healthy fats rather than red meat and sugar.

The ASA, a division of the American Heart Association, also suggests reducing the risk of stroke by exercising regularly, getting enough sleep, maintaining a healthy weight, controlling cholesterol, managing blood pressure and blood sugar, and avoiding smoking.

Healthcare professionals should screen patients for sedentary behavior – adults should get at least 150 minutes per week of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 75 minutes per week of vigorous exercise, or a mixture of both throughout the week.

Adults should also be screened and educated about the importance of non-medical factors such as education, financial stability and access to care and healthy food, as well as neighborhood walkability, the ASA said.

In turn, women may need to be screened more often than men for stroke risk.

Their risk factors include the use of birth control pills and pregnancy complications such as high blood pressure and premature birth. Women also tend to live longer. About 55,000 more women than men have a stroke each year in the U.S., according to the ASA.

To help inform preventive treatment, the American Heart Association last year introduced its updated risk calculator (PREVENT) that can estimate the 10-year and 30-year risk of stroke and heart disease in people over 30 years old.

“Understanding which people are at increased risk of a first stroke and providing support to maintain heart and brain health can help prevent a first stroke,” Bushnell said.

Warning signs of stroke

Experts use the acronym BE FAST to quickly recognize the warning signs of a stroke and know when to call 911.

• B is for balance – difficulty walking.
• E is for vision – double vision, blurred vision, vision loss.
• F is for a strained or crooked smile.
• Does it mean arm weakness or numbness? This also applies to weakness or numbness in the legs.
• S is for speech changes.
• T stands for time – the time to call 911.