According to studies, almost 75% of the strokes that happen to people every year happen to seniors over the age of 65. Strokes are something that may not be preventable, but there are some risk factors that increase the chance that seniors will have a stroke. Eliminating those risk factors can significantly lower the chances that senior will have a stroke. The most common risk factors for a stroke among seniors are:
Smoking
Smoking is one of the worst things that seniors can do from a health perspective. Many seniors don’t want to quit smoking because they think that all the damage is already done. But seniors can reverse some of the terrible impacts of smoking by quitting now even if they have been smoking for decades. It’s never too late to quit and there is always a benefit in quitting. Quitting smoking can dramatically drop a senior’s risk of having a stroke. If your senior parent needs help quitting smoking there are medications that may be able to help them quit.
Heart Disease
Heart disease is another risk factor for stroke. While it’s not as easy to get rid of heart disease as it is to quit smoking seniors should attempt to manage their heart disease as much as they can. Eating healthy meals, getting enough exercise, and taking medication that will help improve their condition can really help reduce their risk of stroke. Eating a healthy diet is one important part of managing heart disease. Seniors who struggle to eat healthy can get help cooking and shopping for healthy foods from senior home care. With senior home care, seniors will get the support they need to make healthy lifestyle choices.
High Blood Pressure
Seniors with high blood pressure have a much greater risk of stroke than seniors without it. Medication can help lower blood pressure but it’s also important for seniors to be committed to doing things like exercising daily, meditating, and practicing stress reduction techniques to avoid a stroke caused by high blood pressure. Seniors also need to reduce stress as much as possible even that means quitting a job or cutting toxic people out of their lives.
Diabetes
Seniors that have diabetes should be focused on managing their condition. Seniors home care helps seniors with diabetes get the exercise they need to manage their condition. And senior home care can make it easier for seniors with diabetes to eat meals that will help stabilize their blood sugar. Seniors with untreated or unmanaged diabetes have a higher risk of having a stroke than other populations. Even though it can be tough for seniors with diabetes to lose weight and manage their condition seniors can drop their risk of having a stroke quite a bit by doing so. They can also minimize the risk of complications from diabetes if they make an effort to control their blood sugar and lose weight.
Sources:
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/stroke/risk-factors-for-stroke
https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/stroke/causes
If you are considering senior home care in Memorial, TX, for an aging loved one, please call the caring staff at At Your Side Home Care. We will answer all of your senior care questions. Call today: (832) 271-1600.
Our Certified Nurse Aides, 24-Hour Live-in Assistants and Home Health Aides are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. We also provide the security and confidence of 24-hour Telephone Assistance, so fast, reliable help is always available when it's needed. To learn more about our homecare services see our homecare services page.
Different people need different levels of homecare. To meet the requirements of our clients, At Your Side Homecare maintains consistent staffing levels of caring professionals. Homecare service is available for as little as a few hours a week, or as many as 24 hours a day, seven days a week
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