Townsend Letter published this review in the November 2015 issue
An Anti-Aging Perspective for Stroke Prevention
by Ronald Klatz, MD, DO, and Robert Goldman, MD, PhD, DO, FAASP www.worldhealth.net
Excerpts from the Introduction:
The fifth leading cause of death in the US and a major cause of adult disability, stroke afflicts approximately 800,000 Americans annually. One American dies from a stroke every 4 minutes, on average.
A stroke or transient ischemic attack (TIA) by age 50 at least triples mortality risk over the subsequent decades.
…. a stroke can steal 8 years of brain power overnight. Deborah A. Levine and colleagues from the University of Michigan (US) analyzed data collected on 4908 black and white men and women, aged 65 years and older, who were enrolled in the Health and Retirement Study. The team assessed for changes in global cognition – before and after incident stroke. Data analysis revealed that having a stroke ages a person's brain function by almost 8 years, as reflected by slower memory and thinking speeds. The lead investigator urges: "These results show the amount of cognitive aging that stroke brings on, and therefore the importance of stroke prevention to reduce the risk of cognitive decline."
With stroke's potential to gravely compromise quality of life, as well as shorten lifespan, prevention via risk reduction is key.
This column reviews recent studies that suggest simple and natural approaches that may help you reduce your stroke risk. Continue online here: [
townsendletter.com]
