More strokes in young people: risk factors and causes
Created: 2022-12-23 06:27
By: Carolin Gehrmann
A stroke is a serious illness that can have lasting consequences.
More and more young people are also affected.
Individual risk factors play an important role here.
Some of them can be avoided.
Berlin/Bremen – Strokes usually occur very suddenly.
The disease becomes noticeable through speech disorders, paralysis or dizziness, because the brain is suddenly no longer supplied with sufficient oxygen.
The disease mainly affects older people, but more and more younger people are also affected.
Ten to 15 percent of those affected are under 55 years old, the German Stroke Society (DGS)
has now warned .
The German Stroke Society warns that more and more young people are affected by strokes.
(Iconic image) © Designer491/IMAGO
Strokes in younger people: which risk factors cause the disease
Around 270,000 people in Germany suffer a stroke every year.
According to the DGS, the causes included the classic risk factors such as obesity, smoking, high blood pressure and too little exercise, which are also responsible for other diseases such as heart attacks, cancer or diabetes.
If the disease occurs in the youngest age group between 18 and 35 years, then according to the DSG there are usually certain, often congenital, risk factors that cause the disease.
This includes:
heart defect
Disorders of blood coagulation or lipid metabolism
Cracks in the head or carotid artery
genetic factors
According to the DSG, anyone who suffers a stroke at a comparatively young age has far better chances of survival.
Provided that the sick person receives the necessary medical care quickly.
Women in the youngest age group are more frequently affected than their male peers.
This is due to a combination of different risk factors.
Young women between the ages of 18 and 35 have a higher risk of stroke than men
The risk is particularly high in young women who take the pill and smoke at the same time.
In addition, the presence of a migraine with aura is a risk factor, as is pregnancy.
The risk is particularly high around the time of childbirth or shortly after, as Dr.
Alexander Nave, stroke expert at the Berlin Charité, explains.
The following combination increases the risk of a stroke in young women:
take the pill
smoking
Migraine with aura
pregnancy
Stroke risk: between the ages of 35 and 50, more men than women are affected
In the group of 35 to 50 year olds, on the other hand, more men than women fall ill.
The causes here include the classic risk factors such as obesity, smoking, high blood pressure and too little exercise.
According to the DSG
, however, the following applies to both sexes
: The risk increases with the use of drugs, for example cocaine and ecstasy.
By changing your personal lifestyle and eating healthier, incorporating more exercise into your everyday life and avoiding smoking, alcohol and other drugs, you can significantly reduce your personal stroke risk.
Coffee is also said to have a positive effect in preventing strokes.
The consumption of milk, on the other hand, can increase the risk.
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How a stroke occurs and what signs point to the disease
In the event of a stroke, an area of the brain is suddenly no longer supplied with sufficient oxygen due to a blocked or ruptured blood vessel, explains the
DSG
.
Depending on which brain region is affected, typical neurological deficits occur: for example, the affected person can no longer speak clearly or is paralyzed on one side of the body.
Young people should also know the symptoms of a stroke and take them seriously so that they can seek medical care immediately if in doubt.
In the case of a stroke, the principle “time is brain” applies: the quicker the treatment, the less brain tissue is lost.
© Tobias Hase/dpa
Because in the case of a stroke, the principle “time is brain” applies: the faster a stroke patient is treated, the less brain substance is permanently damaged and the lower the probability that severe and often lifelong impairments will remain.
What you can do to prevent strokes and minimize risk factors
In order to prevent a stroke as completely as possible, one should therefore minimize the possible risk factors.
According to Focus
, clogged arteries can be
prevented as follows:
at least one hour of exercise daily
pay attention to a healthy diet: more vegetarian and low-fat dishes, less alcohol and sugar, lots of vitamins and minerals
avoid negative stress: reduce fears and worries or seek help, promote your own well-being
If you have already had a stroke and want to prevent a second one, the
DSG
also advises you to take cholesterol-lowering medication on
a
regular basis.
Lipid-lowering therapy with statins has been shown to reduce the risk.