A stroke is not as dramatic as a heart attack but it can leave you a physical and mental wreck and useless to society, a neurologist said.
Speaking prior to World Stroke Day which is on Friday, Dr Vinod Thomas said about 35 to 40 per cent of the Gulf population was prone to stroke because of the high risk factors in the region.
The risk factors were not genetic but due to the region’s unhealthy lifestyle. Stroke is common in countries which have a high number of diabetics, and people with high blood pressure and high bad cholesterol, he said.
“A large number of expatriates are also stressed out because of fragmented families and now also because of the international recession,” he said. “It affects everyone across the socio-economic [spectrum].”
The neurologist said stroke was now attacking younger people as a number in their 20s were diabetics, and a number had hypertension in their mid-30s.
Gulf News