‘Early treatment, regular exercise prevent stroke’

Dr Emmanuel Effa, a Consultant Physician with University of Calabar Teaching Hospital says early treatment and regular exercise can reduce the risk of stroke, especially among the aged.
He made this known on Tuesday at a roundtable organised by Cochrane Nigeria, a health research institute for tropical disease and prevention.
Effa, also the Head of Internal Medicine, University of Calabar, said that stroke, also called Cerebrovascular Accident (CVA) or “brain attack” occurred when the blood supply to the brain was either interrupted or reduced.
He explained that stroke could also affect peoples’ life and change their ability to live independently.
According to him, stroke can occur suddenly and at times it builds up for a longer period of time before it occurs
He mentioned some of the symptoms of stroke to include  weakness, inability to speak, difficulty in swallowing and involuntary eye movement.
He added that “stroke has claimed many lives across the globe. In Nigeria, for every 100 persons that are admitted into hospital, 40 of them are said to be suffering from stroke.
“From the age of 70 and above, there is high risk of suffering from stroke. People who lie down for a long period of time without any form of exercise are also at risk.
“The best method of preventing stroke is by visiting your physician regularly for medical check-ups and doing regular exercise.”
He cautioned against high consumption of alcohol, salty foods and smoking, saying all these contribute to high risk of suffering from stroke.
He advised youths to shun illicit drugs and high consumption of alcohol, saying that stroke survivors usually had one form of brain damage or the other.
Dr Olabisi Oduwale, a Research Scientist with Cochrane Nigeria, said physical exercise was important in everyday life activities.
Oduwale said regular physical fitness was important “because it improves the cognitive function (thinking skills) and it can reduce the chances of having stroke.”