REVIEW: In our last two health columns, we have discussed stroke as one of the most dreaded and disabling diseases. But it is not a disease that attacks indiscriminately. While evolving now around the world, in many populations around the world, stroke was virtually unknown. Are there lessons to be learned? How can we reduce our risk? Would it not be by adopting a lifestyle that promotes healthier arteries and more optimal blood pressure levels?
From Theory to Action
1. Know your blood pressure. If you’re over age 40, have it checked at least twice a year. If it’s high, make lifestyle changes. Move toward a diet high in fiber. Every day, eat more Fruits, Vegetables, Whole Grains and Legumes (beans and lentils). Have a few (some) nuts and seeds, and drink plenty of water. And beware of foods loaded with salt. Get the salt out! Most of us need to reduce our salt intake. Don’t worry about not getting enough salt. If you are like most people in North America, you eat more than 10 times the amount the body needs. Here are the main contributors to this salt excess:
a. Table Salt
Don’t add salt at the table. You probably get too much already from the food you eat. Don’t add to the problem by pouring more on. Your food will seem bland for a few weeks, but your taste buds will soon adjust, and you will begin to enjoy the subtle flavors of foods. The day will come when foods you now think of as delicious will taste salty.
b. Salty Snacks
Things like potato chips, pretzels, and salted nuts are so dangerous they should have a warning from the Surgeon General on the box: “Warning: salty snacks are linked to hypertension, stroke, and heart disease. Eat at your own risk.” If you must snack, use substitutes like carrot sticks and sliced apples.
c. Fast Foods and Restaurant Food
Cutting salt intake to less than five grams a day (one teaspoonful) may reduce (if not at times by itself eliminate) high blood pressure. But you will never reach that goal until you break the fast-food habit and become more selective in the restaurants you can support.
2. Normalize your weight. Beware of high calorie foods usually high in sugar (cakes, pies, candy, sodas), fats (meats, cheese, pizzas, sausages) and oils (dressings, fried foods) and in general, beware of fast foods.
3. Find out if you have atrial fibrillation (irregular heart rate).
4. If you smoke, stop.
5. Know your cholesterol number! If it’s above 160 mg/dL, then make some of the dietary changes towards a more plant-based whole food diet. Leave those animal products and oriental oils (palm and coconut oils) with their high saturated fat content alone.
6. Actively exercise daily.
Goal Setting
List several things you can do to reduce your risk of a stroke:
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