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Life Threatening Stroke Can be Prevented Pittsfield, Massachusetts (MA) - Berkshire Health Systems
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  5. Life Threatening Stroke Can be Prevented

Health Take-Away

Health Take-Away

  • Alcohol's Impact on Breast Cancer Risk
  • Acupuncture Can Help with Relief in Breast Cancer Care
  • Breast Reconstruction Surgery Journey is Personal
  • Building Your Immunity during COVID-19
  • Emotional Toll of COVID-19
  • COVID-19 Anti-Body Testing: What It Tells You What It Won't
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  • Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine: What is OMM
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  • Hunger in the Berkshires
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  • Embrace Mindfulness
  • Low Carb High Fat Diet has Benefits
  • Probiotics Uses the Good Bugs to Fight the Bad Ones
  • Use the Power of Nature for Better Health
  • Unplug from Online for Better Health
  • Weight Loss Through Narrowing Your Eating Window
  • Mammography and Dense Breast Tissue
  • Medication-Assisted Treatment for Addiction Disorder
  • Smoker or Former Smoker? Lung Cancer Screening is Recommended for You
  • Be Safe When Using Over the Counter Medications
  • Screenings for Colon Cancer
  • Thyroid Health Essential to Metabolism
  • Go for Nutrition that is Heart Healthy
  • High Blood Pressure and Ways to Lower It
  • Hospitalists: Your Around the Clock Caregiver
  • Weight Loss Surgery Has Lasting Impact
  • Can you Find Joy in the Holidays When Sick?
  • Coping with Holiday Depression
  • When Quitting Smoking You May Need to Try and Try Again
  • Vaginal Birth after C-Section
  • New Tool to Assess Breast Cancer Risk
  • Migraines: How to Treat Them
  • Vestibular Care: It's All in Your Ears
  • Prepare for a Healthy Trip Abroad
  • New Moms Encouraged to Breast Feed
  • Language Diversity Important to Healthcare
  • Latest Advances in Joint Replacement
  • Vaping and Nicotine Addiction
  • Urgent Care or Emergency Department
  • Free Medicare Wellness Visit
  • Rehabilitation from Stroke Onset
  • Life Threatening Stroke Can be Prevented
  • Mammography and MRI for Women with High Risk of Breast Cancer
  • Breaking the Silence on Kidney Disease
  • Stop Mindless Eating
  • Hospitals Working to Improve Heart Health
  • Your Healthy Gut Bacteria
  • Give Up Smoking in 2018
  • Healthy Resolutions for 2018
  • Healthy Giving for 2017
  • Concussions: Myths and Truths
  • Celebrate a Thankful & Healthy Holiday
  • Don't Die of Embarrassment: Get Screened for Colon Cancer
  • Don't Let the Flu Get You This Season
  • Advanced Cardiac Imaging
  • Chronic Wound Care
  • What is a Hospitalist?
  • Healthy Heart Rhythms
  • Wellness Coaching
  • Men's Health In Crisis
  • Prevent Stroke or Respond FAST
  • Walking to Good Health
  • Healing Through Acupuncture
  • Self Care is Our Future
  • Family Wellness - Play Together Stay Healthy Together
  • Rewriting Your Book of Life
  • Pre-Diabetes: A Wake-Up Call for Better Health
  • Overcoming Crisis With Resiliency
  • Stepping Off the Slippery Slope
  • Sleep & Wellness: Learning to Cherish Your Sleep
  • Kicking the Habit and Ending the Fear
  • High Blood Pressure: One of the Few Things in Life We Can Control
  • Friendship is Powerful Medicine
  • It's Flu Season: Get the Vaccine!
  • The Healing Power of Gratitude
  • Where's the Joy?
  • New Year's Resolutions to Live By
  • Preventing Falls: A Leading Health Risk for the Older Population
  • Staying Healthy in the Office
  • Exercising at Home and Staying Fit in the Winter
  • Cardiac Rehabilitation: Regaining a Healthier and Better Life
  • Nutrition & Exercise: Two Great Gifts for Children
  • A Screening That Has Saved More than a Million Lives
  • How Walking Can Change Your Life
  • Injury-Free Sports & Activities
  • Have a Healthy Summer
  • Head to a Farmers' Market
  • Just Breathe
  • Lyme Disease Facts
  • Mindful Eating
  • Empathy in Healthcare
  • Preparing Your Family for an Emergency
  • Helping Someone to Cope with Opioid Addiction
  • Breast Cancer Awareness: Mammograms Save Lives
  • Antibiotic Resistance
  • Lung Cancer Screening
  • Giving Thanks
  • Healthy Holidays
  • Alcohol's Impact on Breast Cancer Risk
  • Acupuncture Can Help with Relief in Breast Cancer Care
  • Breast Reconstruction Surgery Journey is Personal
  • Building Your Immunity during COVID-19
  • Emotional Toll of COVID-19
  • COVID-19 Anti-Body Testing: What It Tells You What It Won't
  • Treating Varicose Veins
  • Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine: What is OMM
  • Know Your Audiology Options
  • Pets as Therapists
  • Reducing the Stigma of Substance Use Disorder
  • Be Kind to Your Heart
  • Headache Care
  • Managing Presenteeism
  • Don't Struggle with Resolutions
  • Enjoy the Holidays Through the Gift of Giving
  • Seasonal Affective Disorder
  • Save a Life, Lift Your Soul, Give Blood
  • Team Approach for Breast Cancer
  • Surviving Breast Cancer: A Journey
  • Hunger in the Berkshires
  • Vaccinations Help Avoid Needless Risks
  • Embrace Mindfulness
  • Low Carb High Fat Diet has Benefits
  • Probiotics Uses the Good Bugs to Fight the Bad Ones
  • Use the Power of Nature for Better Health
  • Unplug from Online for Better Health
  • Weight Loss Through Narrowing Your Eating Window
  • Mammography and Dense Breast Tissue
  • Medication-Assisted Treatment for Addiction Disorder
  • Smoker or Former Smoker? Lung Cancer Screening is Recommended for You
  • Be Safe When Using Over the Counter Medications
  • Screenings for Colon Cancer
  • Thyroid Health Essential to Metabolism
  • Go for Nutrition that is Heart Healthy
  • High Blood Pressure and Ways to Lower It
  • Hospitalists: Your Around the Clock Caregiver
  • Weight Loss Surgery Has Lasting Impact
  • Can you Find Joy in the Holidays When Sick?
  • Coping with Holiday Depression
  • When Quitting Smoking You May Need to Try and Try Again
  • Vaginal Birth after C-Section
  • New Tool to Assess Breast Cancer Risk
  • Migraines: How to Treat Them
  • Vestibular Care: It's All in Your Ears
  • Prepare for a Healthy Trip Abroad
  • New Moms Encouraged to Breast Feed
  • Language Diversity Important to Healthcare
  • Latest Advances in Joint Replacement
  • Vaping and Nicotine Addiction
  • Urgent Care or Emergency Department
  • Free Medicare Wellness Visit
  • Rehabilitation from Stroke Onset
  • Life Threatening Stroke Can be Prevented
  • Mammography and MRI for Women with High Risk of Breast Cancer
  • Breaking the Silence on Kidney Disease
  • Stop Mindless Eating
  • Hospitals Working to Improve Heart Health
  • Your Healthy Gut Bacteria
  • Give Up Smoking in 2018
  • Healthy Resolutions for 2018
  • Healthy Giving for 2017
  • Concussions: Myths and Truths
  • Celebrate a Thankful & Healthy Holiday
  • Don't Die of Embarrassment: Get Screened for Colon Cancer
  • Don't Let the Flu Get You This Season
  • Advanced Cardiac Imaging
  • Chronic Wound Care
  • What is a Hospitalist?
  • Healthy Heart Rhythms
  • Wellness Coaching
  • Men's Health In Crisis
  • Prevent Stroke or Respond FAST
  • Walking to Good Health
  • Healing Through Acupuncture
  • Self Care is Our Future
  • Family Wellness - Play Together Stay Healthy Together
  • Rewriting Your Book of Life
  • Pre-Diabetes: A Wake-Up Call for Better Health
  • Overcoming Crisis With Resiliency
  • Stepping Off the Slippery Slope
  • Sleep & Wellness: Learning to Cherish Your Sleep
  • Kicking the Habit and Ending the Fear
  • High Blood Pressure: One of the Few Things in Life We Can Control
  • Friendship is Powerful Medicine
  • It's Flu Season: Get the Vaccine!
  • The Healing Power of Gratitude
  • Where's the Joy?
  • New Year's Resolutions to Live By
  • Preventing Falls: A Leading Health Risk for the Older Population
  • Staying Healthy in the Office
  • Exercising at Home and Staying Fit in the Winter
  • Cardiac Rehabilitation: Regaining a Healthier and Better Life
  • Nutrition & Exercise: Two Great Gifts for Children
  • A Screening That Has Saved More than a Million Lives
  • How Walking Can Change Your Life
  • Injury-Free Sports & Activities
  • Have a Healthy Summer
  • Head to a Farmers' Market
  • Just Breathe
  • Lyme Disease Facts
  • Mindful Eating
  • Empathy in Healthcare
  • Preparing Your Family for an Emergency
  • Helping Someone to Cope with Opioid Addiction
  • Breast Cancer Awareness: Mammograms Save Lives
  • Antibiotic Resistance
  • Lung Cancer Screening
  • Giving Thanks
  • Healthy Holidays

Life Threatening Stroke Can be Prevented

Strokes can be deadly or debilitating, but also highly preventable

By Laurence Ufford, M.D., and Darlene Boyce, C.N.P., A.N.V.P.- B.C.

Every 40 seconds, someone suffers a stroke, the leading cause of serious long-term disability and the fifth leading cause of death in the U.S. UFFORD.jpgEvery three to four minutes, someone dies from stroke. But what’s most important to know about those grim statistics is that the vast majority of strokes can be prevented through basic lifestyle changes and closer attention to well-known risk factors.

A stroke occurs when a blood vessel that carries oxygen and nutrients to the brain is either blocked by a clot or bursts. When that happens, part of the brain can’t get the blood and oxygen it needs, so brain cells die – at the rate of two million cells per minute. Timing is everything. Depending on how quickly a patient arrives at the hospital, the result can range from relatively minor short-term effects to major long-term paralytic disability or death. Sadly, at least two-thirds of stroke victims wait too long to get themselves in for treatment that could save their lives or dramatically reduce disability. 

But when it comes to stroke, the first thing to focus on is prevention. It really comes down to simple things like quitting smoking, eating right, managing your weight, exercising, seeing your doctor regularly and taking your prescribed medications. 

Your stroke prevention checklist should include these seven steps:

1. Lower your blood pressure and cholesterol. Hypertension or high blood pressure is by far the leading risk factor for stroke. Monitoring and treating your pressure – keeping it below 140/90 or whatever your doctor advises – is the biggest difference you can make. High cholesterol is another major risk. Be sure to take whatever medications your doctor prescribes for both conditions.  Also discuss a daily aspirin regimen. Reduce salt in your diet, avoid high cholesterol foods and eat 4 to 5 cups of fruits and vegetables every day.

2. Treat diabetes.  Having high blood sugar damages blood vessels over time, making clots more likely. Keep your blood sugar under control as directed by your doctor. Use diet, exercise and medicines to keep your level within recommended range.

3. Quit smoking. Smoking accelerates clot formation by thickening your blood and increasing the buildup of plaque in your arteries. Quitting smoking is one of the most critical lifestyle changes you can make to reduce your stroke risk.

4. Lose weight. Obesity, often accompanied by high blood pressure and diabetes, raises your risk of stroke. If you're overweight, losing as little as 10 pounds can significantly lower your risk. Work with your doctor to create a personal weight loss strategy.

5. Be more active. Exercise contributes to losing weight and lowering blood pressure, and on its own is a stroke reducer. Exercise at a moderate intensity (even a brisk walk around the block) at least five days a week.

6. If you drink — do it in moderation. Studies show that drinking one 5-ounce serving of alcohol daily may actually decrease your risk of stroke. But once you start drinking more than two, your risk rises dramatically.

7. Treat atrial fibrillation. This form of irregular heartbeat causes clots to form in the heart and possibly travel to the brain, triggering a stroke. If you have been diagnosed with A-Fib, stick to the treatments. You may need to take a blood thinner such as warfarin (Coumadin) or the newer oral anticoagulants.

While we say those steps are basic and straightforward, that doesn’t mean it’s always easy.  Making any lifestyle changes can be a real challenge, but the price of ignoring them could be your life. 

Even if you follow all those steps, strokes can still happen.  F.A.S.T. is any easy way to recognize and react to symptoms: Face drooping. Arm weakness. Speech difficulty = Time to call 911. 

Laurence Ufford, M.D, is Division Chief of Neurology at Berkshire Medical Center, where Darlene Boyce, an Adult Nurse Practitioner and Board Certified Acute Neurovascular Practitioner, is the Neurology Service Manager and Stroke Program Coordinator.

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