In France, stroke is the leading cause of death for women (before ischemic heart disease and breast cancer) and the third leading cause of death for men. Why the women? Because they are more exposed than men to migraines, diabetes, hypertension, depression and stress which are all risk factors for stroke. In addition, certain pathologies of pregnancy represent risk factors for the development of the disease after menopause. For example, a young woman who has high blood pressure during pregnancy doubles her risk of having a stroke later.
Stroke is often considered a disease of the end of life, since the average age of those affected is 73 years. But this is to forget that 25% of those affected are still under 65 years old.
As there are no warning signs, only a healthy lifestyle can limit the risks: do not eat too much fat (for cholesterol), too sweet (for diabetes) and too salty (for the hypertension), exercise regularly, do not smoke and avoid being overweight.
And find out more ways to reduce your risk of stroke:
