What is a stroke? And how you can prevent them from happening to you?

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Strokes are formally termed as cerebrovascular accidents. The blood supply to the brain is disturbed and this leads to the brain losing its ability to function properly and this can happen at a very frightening speed. Factors that are responsible for this are thrombosis i.e. a blockage of the blood supply, a lack of blood supply or even internal bleeding.

Strokes, no matter the level of severity, are extremely dangerous and can cause permanent injury to an individual and can even be fatal. When the brain becomes affected then functions such as being unable to move your limbs on either or both sides of your body, not being able to speak normally or understand speech and even vision can be affected.

Strokes can happen to anybody at anytime. According to The Stroke Association, 150,000 people across the United Kingdom suffer from a stroke and it is the third most common cause of death.

However, they are beatable and there is something you can do now to minimise the possibility of you suffering from a stroke. Lifestyle factors are critical - high blood pressure, smoking and a poor diet resulting in high cholesterol are major contributors to strokes. Preventative measures are essential and it doesn't require too much of an effort to make the necessary changes that will help you in the future.

Decrease the intake of fatty foods - cut down on your intake of takeaway food (you can still have the odd treat once a week!), eat less sweets and chocolate bars. And increase your intake of good food such as fruit and vegetables (remember your five portions a day). Have Scotland's finest breakfast - porridge! It is a super source of slow releasing energy and you can make it taste delicious too by having a different flavour of porridge every morning for instance.

Cut down on your smoking. The National Health Service now run smoking cessation clinics everywhere. Find out where your nearest one is by contacting either your local pharmacy (many pharmacies now run smoking cessation clinics) or GP practice. Did you know that, according to the National Stroke Association, smoking doubles the risk of a smoker when it comes to potentially having a stroke in comparison to a non-smoker?

So start making those simple changes to your life now and soon enough you will be living a happy and healthier lifestyle and thus minimising the risk of you having a stroke or something else that could badly affect your health.