A stroke causes a disturbance in cerebral circulation, due to which certain parts of the brain are insufficiently supplied with oxygen and nutrients, and this leads to damage and death of nerve cells. The causes are a clot that clogs an artery and thus prevents blood flow or a blood vessel ruptures when blood begins to penetrate the surrounding tissue.
"The most common cause of damage to blood vessels in the brain that leads to stroke is atherosclerosis, a disease that leads to the formation of deposits of fat, connective tissue, clots, calcium and other substances in the blood vessels, which causes narrowing, blockage and/or weakening of the blood vessel walls" , explain the Croatian Society for the Prevention of Stroke.
"A stroke can happen unexpectedly and in any situation. In 85 percent of cases, a stroke is caused by a blockage of a blood vessel with a clot. Then brain damage and disability can be reduced/prevented with drugs (thrombolysis) and mechanical thrombectomy. It is important to get to the hospital as soon as possible stroke symptoms occur Thrombolysis can be administered within 3 to 4,5 hours and mechanical thrombectomy within 6 hours of stroke onset.Stroke can occur in anyone for years. Every minute counts. If you discover any of these signs of a stroke, don't wait, call XNUMX immediately." 24sata.
The first symptoms of a stroke
- numbness, weakness or numbness of the face, arm or leg, especially if one side of the body is affected
- speech disorders: difficult and unintelligible pronunciation of words, complete inability to pronounce words and/or difficulty or complete misunderstanding of another person's speech
- sudden blurring or loss of vision, especially in one eye or half of the field of vision
- a sudden severe headache followed by vomiting without a clear cause
- loss of balance
- dizziness, unsteadiness and drifting while walking, sudden falls associated with other symptoms.
The first and basic thing is to recognize that it is a stroke, and the FAST test can help with that. These tests allow us to quickly recognize the symptoms of a stroke:
F - FACE - Does the patient have a droopy face?
A – ARM (arm) – Does the patient have arm weakness?
S – SPEECH (speech) – Does the patient have a speech impediment?
T - TIME (time) actually means that time is especially important (it is necessary to know the time when the symptoms appeared) and immediately call an ambulance or go to the hospital in order to start treatment as soon as possible.
After recognizing the signs of a stroke and calling an ambulance, it is necessary to calm the person down, and in case he has a disordered state of consciousness, lay him on his side.
How to protect yourself from stroke?
Healthy food and physical activity of just half an hour of moderate exercise or walking every day are a good recipe for stroke prevention. Experts say that you should eat blue fish two to three times a week because they contain large amounts of unsaturated fatty acids.
In addition, it is allowed to drink one glass of red wine a day, ideally a real domestic one. Namely, red wine prevents the formation of blood clots. It is also good to drink green tea because it cleanses the body of toxins and strengthens immunity.
Chocolate lovers will be delighted to learn that it is recommended to eat dark chocolate sometimes because it has a positive effect on the cardiovascular system. And garlic is not without reason famous as an excellent food for health - it lowers blood pressure, prevents blood clotting, lowers cholesterol...
Tomatoes should also be eaten whenever there is an opportunity because it has a similar effect to garlic, and besides, it is rich in carotene, provitamin A and lycopene, which has an anti-cancer effect. Include more forest fruits in your diet because of the large amounts of powerful antioxidants - vitamin C, as well as nuts and cereals.
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