From a stroke survivor - take high blood pressure seriously

High blood pressure is the leading cause of strokes. So it should be taken very seriously. A stroke prevented is one life possibly saved or one person potentially not disabled. As a stroke survivor, I wouldn't wish a stroke on anyone.

So we need to better than this -  1 in 4 Medicare patients uses blood Pressure meds incorrectly:

An analysis of 18.5 million Medicare Part D enrollees in 2014 found that 26 percent either skipped doses of their blood pressure medication or stopped taking the drugs entirely, according to the study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Be careful what you read - you've probably seen some bad information

Ah, Facebook.

You can read blog postings there. I enjoy seeing photos and news from my daughters and grandsons, plus news about other family and friends, especially those I seldom see.

But as you know, Facebook is fraught with bad information these days. I recently ran across a supposed list of causes of death so far this year - a list that is NOT reliable information. And since stroke is the fifth-leading cause of death in the United States, that information is important. Right information, that is.

I won't reproduce this falsehood here, but you can read on snopes.com about the supposed list of causes of death:

The list was problematic in several aspects, however. First of all, the displayed figures for 2016 are simply projections based on past trends, as up-to-date information of this nature simply isn't available. The most recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) concerning causes of death tallies mortality data from 2014.

The list mingles diseases - heart disease, for example - with substances: tobacco and alcohol. Obesity itself seldom actually kills anyone, but it's on the list. It's what accompanies obesity or tobacco or alcohol abuse - heart disease and stroke, for example - that can be fatal. A cigarette itself generally doesn't cause a death. But multiple cigarettes can bring about a cause of death.

Here's the actual list of the 2014 leading causes of death in the United States, from this report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

That year is the latest available.

And it's OK to question what you read on Facebook!

Why watch the salt? Read the latest facts

How much salt do you need? Probably less than you consume.

If you are a typical American consumer, chances are 9 out of 10 that you consume too much sodium. The problem? It can contribute to high blood pressure, which is the leading cause of strokes.

This has been in the news before, of course, but habits are hard to break. Read more how Americans still consume too much salt:

More than 90 percent of children and 89 percent of adults consume more sodium than is recommended in the new 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The new guidelines advise no more than 2,300 milligrams (mg) of salt a day -- about a teaspoon -- for most adults.

Recent stroke stats show we've got a lot of work remaining

Men are more likely to die of a stoke than women. And black men are in danger the most. I'm signed up to receive reports from the U.S.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and these nuggets of information came through.

None of these numbers are shocking. Numbers seem to be in a slow downward trend, but still too high. Here's a link and excerpt to the report under the category of QuickStats:

During 2000–2013, age-adjusted death rates for stroke for all racial/ethnic groups decreased steadily. Non-Hispanic white males had the largest decline (41.7%), and Hispanic females had the smallest (35.8%). Throughout the period, the rate for non-Hispanic black was the highest among the racial/ethnic groups examined, followed by non-Hispanic white and Hispanic populations. The rate for males was higher than that for females in each racial/ethnic group.

Now, how do make these numbers better?

Stroke falls in U.S. causes of death

In the news, you can find a New Year hint that stroke treatment seems to be working. Recently, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that stroke is dropping down the list of cause of death in the United States.

Read through this link how stroke falls one place to fifth leading cause of death in U.S.:

Commenting on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report, the American Heart Association (AHA) hypothesize that the drop in deaths from stroke is due to advances in the treatment and prevention of stroke. In particular, the AHA note, there are more stroke centers now operating across the US, and there has also been an improvement in acute care of stroke.

CDC: Thousands of strokes are preventable

Many strokes - especially striking the "younger" set - are preventable. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released new figures about those deaths.

You might have read about stroke risk factors here before - especially smoking and high blood pressure. Controlling those factors can add years of healthy living to many lives. Read the article about how 200,000 heart disease, stroke deaths could be prevented:

"As a doctor, I find it heartbreaking to know that the vast majority of people who are having a heart attack or stroke, under the age of 65 in particular, and dying from it didn't have to have that happen," CDC director Dr. Tom Frieden said during a noon press conference. ...

Each year in the United States nearly 800,000 people die from heart disease or stroke, many of which could have been prevented by proper medical management and lifestyle changes to control risk factors, Frieden said.

Click here to read a summary from the CDC.

Awesome treatment: Walking

Walking is one of the best "medicines" anyone can take. It can be habit-forming - for the good. Walking - and other exercise - can help prevent strokes and a myriad of other health problems.

Not long ago, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released some survey information about walking activities. More people are walking, but not yet enough, says a MedPage Today article:

Still, walking is a "wonder drug" that can prevent a variety of maladies from diabetes to cancer, CDC director Tom Frieden, MD, MPH, said during a phone call with reporters.

"I would say there's no single drug that can do anything like what regular physical activity does," Frieden said.

The data come from the CDC's 2005 and 2010 National Health Interview Surveys, and Frieden said the increase in walking prevalence was seen across almost all demographic groups.

Yet only 48% of Americans are meeting 2008 guidelines that recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking, per week, and a third of Americans said they don't get any physical activity at all.

(Photo from CDC) 

Strokes hit young people in rising numbers

A repeated message from this blog is that strokes can hit both young and old. While the stereotypical stroke patient is an elderly man, every group faces that risk.

It was especially brought home by recent research from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing that ischemic strokes increased among teens and children:

"We cannot link anything in particular to the trend in younger patients, but I believe the role of obesity and hypertension will prompt a big discussion. Unfortunately, right now we can't speculate on the causes," said [Xin] Tong, a health statistician with the CDC's Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention in Atlanta.

However, hospitals and physicians should be aware of the rising risk of stroke in young people, and the necessity to educate them about stroke symptoms, Tong said.

"Acute ischemic stroke is currently considered something that mostly happens to older people, but awareness of rising rates in the young is important or else tPA [tissue plasminogen activator] and other important stroke treatment may be unnecessarily delayed in younger patients," she said.

 For any age, everyone should take the stroke signs seriously and get help right away.

Time = brain

As one more report shows, call 911 at first sign of stroke:

In a report released Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a national registry of patients who suffered a stroke between 2005 and 2007 has found that nearly 40 percent used private transportation to get to a hospital emergency room rather than calling 911.

Bad decision, because as every neurologist will tell you: Time is brain.

Upcoming: Stroke Awareness Month

A recent article from US News and World Report shows the need for a stroke awareness campaign:

Fewer than two in five people surveyed knew all five warning signs and knew to call 911, the survey found. The results were to be presented ... at the International Stroke Conference in San Diego.

"We have to make sure that people know the signs and symptoms of stroke because the patient would need to get to the hospital as soon as possible to have a much higher chance of survival and avoiding potential disabilities," the survey's lead author, Dr. Jing Fang, an epidemiologist in the division for heart disease and stroke prevention at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, said in a news release issued by the American Stroke Association, which is sponsoring the conference.

This blog will include frequent stroke awareness messages in postings during May, which is Stroke Awareness Month.

Another Stroke Awareness Month resource

One more resource for Stroke Awareness Month, this one from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

It's a Web page dedicated to the month with several resources and links of helpful material.