Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Advance Home Healthcare, Araba K. Biney, has stated that strokes are no longer a condition for the elderly.
The nursing professional said the condition, which was known to affect only the elderly, has shifted to the younger generation.
Speaking in an interview with Rainbowradioonline.com, Araba K. Biney attributed this lifestyle, like smoking and consumption of alcohol, to all causes of stroke nowadays.
She explained that our eating habits are also a factor because we put on weight so much that we don’t take care of the weight, which is a strain on the body, and it causes your blood pressure to go high, and you can get a stroke from it.
Persons who are also hypertensive and fail to control it could cause strokes and other diseases like diabetes, which can contribute to the cause of stroke. There are others as well, but mostly, it is lifestyle.
The CEO said that exercising is one very good thing that can help, but most importantly, we have to adopt a healthy lifestyle by checking our weight, avoiding smoking, and drinking too much alcohol to avoid strokes.
She asserted that strokes have serious financial, psychological, and social impacts on the affected person and his or her immediate family.
‘’If the person is a breadwinner and a man who is the breadwinner, it affects the wife and children and other relatives, and also it affects the family, both internal and external, and work. You also put pressure on your colleagues at work because you are invalid and cannot work. It is also a strain on the government because we would need doctors and nurses to look after you. We can prevent it. Regular check-ups are important. After age 30, you should have regular medical check-ups. Because of our lifestyle and the food we eat, it would be good to check your blood pressure regularly because diabetes can cause stroke.’’
Araba K. Biney admitted that ”it is very expensive to treat a stroke because you have to take medication every day, so can you imagine a month of medication? The care: Once you are released from the hospital, you will require money to care for yourself. It will place a strain on your family and children.
People with strokes, she added, suffer from depression, and some are prescribed medication due to low self-esteem.’We must try to prevent it. Strokes are no longer just an issue for the elderly. It is now a part of our everyday lives. The type of food we consume, as well as the additives added to it, particularly in processed foods. Young people eat those foods, as do old people, so you can’t say it’s a condition for the elderly.
She has therefore urged the government to focus more on health education by raising awareness on the causes of stroke and prevention.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
