World Stroke Day, on 29 October, brought an urgent call to action: be active every day to lower your risk of stroke. As the leading cause of disability worldwide, stroke affects over 12 million people annually, with as many as 90 per cent of cases preventable.
A stroke can have catastrophic health impacts, from long-term disability to mental health challenges and, in some cases, death. Prevention remains essential to reducing the significant burden of stroke on individuals, families and healthcare systems.
A recent article in The Lancet Neurology highlighted that stroke prevention is achievable with improved healthy lifestyle behaviours, including smoking cessation and reduction of alcohol, salt and sugar.
Increasing physical activity and improving your diet are other key components for better health, and reducing the risk of stroke.
In Australia, two in three adults are overweight or obese, a statistic that highlights the need for greater awareness around lifestyle changes. A balanced diet and regular physical activity can significantly reduce the risk of stroke while boosting overall health.
The bottom line is, that by making small changes, people can reduce their risk of stroke. As a nation and as an aged care sector, we should be prioritising stroke prevention by helping older people make healthy choices every day.
Learn more, take action and prevent stroke
Love Your Brain is a free digital platform to empower people to take action to prevent stroke, developed by Monash University, the Stroke Foundation and the University of Tasmania.
Aiming to increase awareness of stroke risk factors and encourage simple steps towards better health, the platform engages users with evidence-based content via emails, text messages and an online course. Our stroke prevention digital platform is suitable for people who have never had a stroke or major heart event. This includes older people, their families and people working in aged care.
Love Your Brain includes access to the digital platform for 12 weeks and two surveys. Participation could be from a few minutes per week to as much as participants would like to be involved.
Over the 12 weeks, participants will receive information about stroke, hear stories from people who have had a stroke, and receive tips on how to reduce their risk of stroke – valuable information that can be shared with aged care clients.
Stroke changes live in an instant, and the knowledge gained from the digital platform may benefit participants personally or those they work with. Together we can help to share the message of stroke prevention.
To access Love Your Brain, or to find out more visit: redcap.link/LoveYourBrain
Professor Monique Kilkenny, Monash University
Professor Seana Gall, University of Tasmania