With May being American Stroke Awareness Month, our team at AFC Urgent Care Chattanooga wants to share some information about the main causes of stroke, as well as steps you can take to prevent a stroke from happening.
Who Is at Risk for a Stroke?
There are two main types of stroke. You can either have a stroke caused by a loss of blood supply (ischemia) in the brain, or you can have bleeding (hemorrhage) in the brain.
While this can happen to anyone, there are a number of factors that can put people at a higher risk for a stroke, such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and heart rhythm disturbances like atrial fibrillation. Smoking can also put you at a higher risk for stroke, which is why it is important to practicing smoking cessation.
Risk Factors for Stroke
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Heart disease
- Smoking
- Personal or family history of stroke
How Can You Prevent a Stroke?
A key to helping reduce your chances of stroke in the future is to do what you can to control your risk factors. For instance, if you are a smoker, quit smoking. If you have high blood pressure and/or high cholesterol levels, then do what you can to maintain healthy blood pressure and cholesterol numbers.
If you have diabetes, you want to take steps to properly manage your condition and keep your blood glucose levels in a range determined by your doctor.
Ways to Manage Diabetes
- Exercise on a regular basis.
- Know your blood glucose numbers.
- Stay hydrated.
- Eat a diet that’s low in added sugar, sodium and saturated fat.
- Get enough quality sleep.
- Take medications as prescribed.
If you or a loved one are having stroke symptoms, call 911 for immediate medical care. For non-emergency medical needs, AFC Urgent Care Chattanooga is now offering AFC TeleCare services. Visit our website today to schedule your virtual visit.
