Risk Factors

content image Everyone has some stroke risk. A few stroke risk factors are beyond your control, such as being over age 55, being a male, being an African-American, having diabetes, and having a family history of stroke. If you have one of these risk factors, it is even more important that you learn about the lifestyle and medical changes you can make to prevent a stroke.

Medical stroke risk factors include:

Previous stroke
Previous episode of transient ischemic attack (TIA) or mini-stroke
High cholesterol
High blood pressure
Heart disease
Atrial fibrillation
Carotid artery disease

These medical risk factors can be controlled. Talk with your doctor about what will work best for you.

Lifestyle stroke risk factors include:

Smoking
Obesity
Excessive Alcohol Consumption

You can control these lifestyle risk factors by quitting smoking, exercising regularly, watching what and how much you eat and limiting alcohol consumption.

Source: National Stroke Association