May is Stroke Awareness Month

May is Stroke Awareness Month. The latest statistics regarding stroke are alarming:

Every 40 seconds, someone in the United States has a stroke.
Every 4 minutes, someone in the United States dies from a stroke.
Stroke is the 5th leading cause of death in the United States and is the leading cause of disability.
According to the World Health Organization, 15 million people suffer stroke worldwide each year. Of these, 5 million die and another 5 million are permanently disabled.

The National Stroke Association is showcasing the top 10 modifiable risk factors associated with stroke. Modifiable means you have the ability to improve (“modify”) or change a certain risk factor, versus nonmodifiable risk factors (such as age, nationality, and gender). Research has shown that approximately 90% of all strokes are somehow related to these 10 modifiable risk factors; hence, much opportunity exists to reduce your risk of stroke:

Hypertension (high blood pressure)
Physical inactivity
High blood lipid (fats) level
Poor diet
Obesity
Smoking
Heart related causes (heart disease)
Alcohol intake
Stress
Diabetes

In the event that you experience signs of a stroke, it is imperative to call emergency medical services in your area to get to a treatment hospital as soon as possible. Time is brain, and lifesaving medical interventions increase your survival rate, as well as dramatically reduce the possibility of long term disability.