Dr. Mijinyawa Bashir, a consultant physician with the Wuse General Hospital, Abuja, has advocated regular exercise among middle-aged people to avoid stroke.
Bashir gave the advice Wednesday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja.
He said that regular exercise improves the mood and relieve one of stress which he said could lead to stroke in the body.
Bashir explained that stroke was a condition in which blood supply stops flowing to an area of the brain as a result of the blockage of a blood vessel.
Bashir said: “The blockage could result to weakness and inability to function in the affected parts of the brain.
“Stroke occurs when a blood clot or a cholesterol plaque wanders into the brain until it reaches a narrow point where it becomes trapped.
“The blockage of an artery in the brain by a clot is the most common cause of stroke; part of the brain could stop pumping blood and become affected.
“As a result of the deprived blood and oxygen, the cells of that part of the brain die and the part of the body that it controls stops working.”
The physician said that high blood pressure was among the leading causes of stroke as it could cause small arteries inside the brain to burst and increases pressure on the body.
Bashir, however, said that people from the age of 60 and above have doubled risk of a stroke than the youths, adding that men have more risk of stroke than women.
He said: “Cigarette smoking, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, lack of physical activities and high level of bad cholesterol are some of the causes of stroke.
“The symptoms of stroke start with a temporary interruption in blood flow to part of the brain but last for a shorter period of time and do not leave noticeable permanent damage.”
He said stroke could result in minor problems such as weakness in an arm or leg and lead to paralysis or death.
Bashir said many stroke patients were left with weakness on one side of the body, difficulty in speaking and bladder problems.
According to him, management of patients with acute stroke remains multifaceted and includes several aspects of care that have been tested in clinical trials.
He called on government at all levels to ensure adequate healthcare delivery system to enable people have proper treatment.
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