W

idely known as attacking the elderly, unhealthy lifestyles have brought an increase in instances of stroke among young people.

The Health Ministry recorded that stroke, which causes brain dysfunction, threatened around 12 million Indonesians aged 35 and older.

“Stroke no longer only impacts the elderly. People of all ages and social status can suffer from a stroke,” Health Minister Endang Rahayu Sedyaningsih said Saturday during a commemoration of World Stroke Day.

She added that stroke was still the main cause of death in Indonesia.

“Some 15.4 percent of deaths in the country are caused by stroke. This means that one out of seven Indonesians dies of a stroke,” she said.

However, Endang said that stroke was preventable and curable and thus called on the public to practice healthy lifestyles.

“Eat lots of fruits and vegetables and drink plenty of water. Exercise regularly. Consume less salt and sugar. Do not smoke or consume alcohol,” she suggested, reminding that people should also minimize stress, which is believed to be another factor capable of causing a stoke.

The World Stroke Day is observed on Oct. 28 every year, with this year’s theme of “1 of 6”, which means that one out of six people globally, female and male, young and old, will suffer from a stroke.

The Basic Health Research (Riskesdas) says that eight out of 1,000 Indonesians are recorded to have suffered a stroke, which means that there are 1.7 million people out of Indonesia’s existing population of 211 million who have had a stoke.

Riskesdas recorded that in 2007 stroke caused 19.4 percent of deaths in urban areas and 16.1 percent in
rural areas.

The increasing number of stoke patients in the country relates to the estimated increase of people facing a number of risk factors: between 93.1 and 93.4 percent due to insufficient consumption of fruits and vegetables; 65.2 percent from hypertension; 59.6 percent from smoking; 30.5 percent from abdominal obesity; and 10.5 percent from diabetes mellitus.

Neurologist Yoga Yuniadi cites Atrial Fibrillation as another factor causing stroke.

“Atrial Fibrillation (AF), or generally known as blood clotting, is one of the main causes of stroke, which is not yet widely known,” he said.

He added that between 15 and 20 percent of stroke cases were caused by AF.

“Even though hypertension is still considered the main cause of stroke globally, AF is five times more likely to cause a stroke than the other factors, including hypertension,” Yoga said.

AF is caused by an abnormal heart rhythm and is usually accompanied by symptoms related to a rapid heart rate, which in turn restricts the heart’s ability to provide adequate blood flow and oxygen delivery to the rest of the body. This lack of blood movement can result in blood clotting, which can later lead to a stroke.

The increasing number of stroke patients in the country has encouraged different stakeholders, both state and private, to join hands to deal with the disease.

Indonesian Stroke Foundation (Yastroki) chairman Haryono Suyono told reporters that this year’s International Stroke Day had good momentum to raise public awareness of the disease and to jointly deal with it.

Yastroki has agreed to cooperate with Bayer Indonesia to actively campaign against stroke.

“We will soon recruit and train caregivers to help patients and former patients of stroke. These caregivers will spread to all parts of Indonesia, including remote areas,” Haryono said. (msa)