Stroke is one of the diseases of civilization and about 90 percent can be avoided by adopting a healthier lifestyle. So that you can act quickly in an emergency, we will show you which three signs point to the brain disease and which causes lead to the occurrence of a stroke.
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Stroke: You should know these 3 signs
Since a stroke can not only result in consequential damage, but in the worst case even lead to brain death, it is all the more important to be able to perceive and identify the first signs quickly. If you act quickly, you may be able to prevent the worst. Depending on the area of the brain affected, a stroke can result in unilateral facial paralysis, speech disorders and coordination disorders through to unilateral paralysis of the limbs. You can easily recognize these typical signs of a stroke using the so-called FAST test .
- F ace: Unilateral paralysis and numbness are among the typical symptoms. So ask the affected person to smile. If one corner of the mouth hangs down, this indicates a stroke.
- A rms: The same procedure applies to the arms. Ask the affected person to hold both arms outstretched in front of them, palms open. When paralyzed by a stroke, one arm falls down.
- S peech: Ask the person concerned to repeat a simple sentence. Since speech disorders are a typical symptom of a stroke, a slurred or barely understandable speech pattern indicates a stroke.
- T ime: If one or more of the three symptoms above are present and a stroke is suspected, you should not hesitate for a second to dial the emergency number (112) . Because in the event of a cerebral infarction, every single second counts in order to prevent serious consequences such as paralysis, speech disorders or death.
Causes: These factors increase your risk of stroke
There are basically two different forms of stroke, each with different causes, but ultimately are similarly dangerous and in severe cases can lead to brain death within 10 minutes :
- Ischemic stroke (cerebral infarction) : This leads to a vascular occlusion in the brain, which occurs suddenly as a result of a loosened blood clot or gradually as a result of vascular calcification (arteriosclerosis). The disturbed blood supply leads to a lack of nutrients and oxygen, which causes brain cells to gradually die off. Arteriosclerosis or a blood clot can be the cause.
- Hemorrhagic stroke (cerebral hemorrhage) : In this form, a vessel in the brain bursts, causing bleeding. As a result, the surrounding brain areas are no longer sufficiently supplied with nutrients and oxygen. The most common causes of cerebral hemorrhage are high blood pressure and aneurysms – abnormal vascular protuberances that can be congenital.
80 to 85 percent of all strokes are ischemic strokes (cerebral infarction). This is caused by either hardening of the arteries or blood clots. The following risk factors increase the likelihood of these two phenomena occurring and thus the risk of a stroke:
- Hypercholesterinämie
- Elevated blood fat levels
- high blood pressure
- Overweight and especially obesity
- smoking
- Diabetes Typ 2
- Excessive alcohol consumption
- Stress
- cardiac arrhythmias
Up to 90 percent of all strokes could be avoided if we minimize the risk factors mentioned and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Find out here which foods protect particularly well against arteriosclerosis: These 4 foods protect your blood vessels >>
