A stroke happens when blood flow to a part of the brain is interrupted HT FILE PHOTO
LUCKNOW : Lack of exercise coupled with smoking and sitting for long hours during regular 9 am to 5 pm jobs is a major risk factors for blood pressure and diabetes which in turn is responsible for making many young vulnerable to stroke.
“Stroke cases have gone up among people less than 45-years of age and a common reason is hypertension,” said Prof RK Garg, HoD, neurology at King George’s Medical University (KGMU).
“Professionals between 40 and 50 years of age are trying hard to push their career. With a lot of stress in the office, irregular food habits at home and lack of physical exercise, they become soft targets for hypertension and diabetes. Hypertension makes them vulnerable to stroke,” said Prof Garg.
Asked how to identify stroke Prof Garg said, “There are early warning signs that need to be taken seriously.”
Signs of a stroke include sudden numbness or weakness in the face, arm, or leg, especially on one side of the body. Sudden confusion, trouble in speaking or understanding, sudden trouble seeing from one or both eyes, sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance, or coordination, sudden severe headache with no known cause.
“Hypertension is becoming common among office going people, chasing deadlines,” said Prof Kauser Usman, senior faculty member, department of medicine, KGMU.
“Pregnant women too suffer with hypertension and gestational diabetes. This makes them vulnerable to stroke particularly to haemoragic stroke,” said Dr Amita Shukla, senior gynaecologist SC Trivedi Memorial Trust hospital.
“These symptoms, one may think are temporary due to workload, but these are early warning signs,” said Prof Garg.
What is a stroke
A stroke, often referred to as a “brain attack”, happens when blood flow to a part of the brain is interrupted. There are primarily three types of strokes, the first being ischemic stroke, which is most common, caused by a blocked artery from a blood clot. Here, blood is prevented from reaching part of the brain.
Secondly hemorrhagic stroke is caused by a ruptured blood vessel, leading to bleeding. High blood pressure and aneurysms can lead to this type of stroke.
Third type is transient ischemic attack also called a ‘mini stroke’. It is a temporary blockage of blood flow to the brain.
Give 40-minutes in the morning for exercise
Eat what suits you the best according to your work profile
Take a break during lunch hour to walk a few minutes, leaving behind your cellphone and avoid talking office work during that walk
Survey points towards growing health worries
LUCKNOW : In a survey done by Local Circles, a survey platform, about 72% citizens said that they have one or more individuals in their close network who experienced medical conditions like brain stroke, cardiac arrest, heart attack, cancer acceleration in the last 3.5 years.
“Around 11,480 people from 322 districts participated in the survey. Data shows that 32% of citizens surveyed indicated 1-2 people in their close network have suffered, 25% indicated at least 3-5 people closely linked to them, 10% of respondents indicated 7-9 individuals closely connected to them, and 5% indicated 10 or more people in their close social network, said Sachin Taparia, founder of Local Circles.
However, 28% of citizens surveyed were thankful that there was no one in their close social network who had onset of severe health conditions in the last 3.5 years, he said.
In all 68% respondents were men while 32% respondents were women.
Among respondents 43% were from tier 1, 35% from tier 2 and 22% respondents were from tier 3, 4 and rural districts, he added.
