"Fortunately, I was sent to the hospital in time, and I will have to eat this folic acid every day in the future. ”
These are the words of Lao Zhang's old friend when he visited him in the hospital. Lao Zhang is a 52-year-old middle-aged man who is usually in good health and has no discomfort. But just a few days ago, after eating with his old friends, he was walking downstairs when he suddenly felt weakness on the left side of his body, and he couldn't speak clearly, and then he fell to the ground. Fortunately, the old friend responded quickly, immediately dialed 120, and notified Lao Zhang's family to rush to the hospital together.
After a doctor's examination, Lao Zhang was diagnosed with acute cerebral infarction, which is commonly known as cerebral infarction. This made Lao Zhang and his family feel very surprised and frightened, they didn't understand, Lao Zhang usually didn't have any bad habits, why did he suddenly have a cerebral infarction? Is it because of a lack of folic acid?
Folic acid is a water-soluble vitamin, also known as vitamin B9, because it was first extracted from green leafy vegetables such as spinach, so it is also known as folic acid. Folic acid has many important functions in the human body, such as participating in cell ** and proliferation, synthesizing DNA and RNA, regulating homocysteine metabolism, etc. Folic acid deficiency can lead to diseases such as anemia, neural tube defects, and Alzheimer's.
Can folic acid prevent cerebral infarction? This is a problem that many people are concerned about, especially middle-aged and elderly people, who often hear that folic acid can lower blood pressure and prevent stroke, so they begin to supplement a large amount of folic acid, hoping to avoid the occurrence of cerebral infarction. In fact, folic acid does have a certain effect on the prevention of cerebral infarction, but it is not effective for everyone, and more is not always better.
In 2022, a study published in the journal Stroke showed that folic acid supplementation in moderation could reduce the risk of stroke in people with high blood pressure, especially those with elevated homocysteine levels. Homocysteine is an amino acid, its metabolism in the human body requires the participation of folic acid, if folic acid is insufficient, homocysteine will accumulate in the blood, which increases the risk of arteriosclerosis and thrombosis, leading to the occurrence of cerebral infarction or myocardial infarction. Therefore, for this subset of patients, folic acid supplementation can reduce homocysteine levels, thereby reducing blood pressure and the risk of stroke.
In addition to this study, there are many other studies that have confirmed the role of folic acid in stroke prevention, such as CSPPT (a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of folic acid for cardiovascular events in hypertensive patients in China) and HOPE-2 (Heart Attack Prevention Assessment-2) in the United States. These studies have shown that folic acid can reduce homocysteine levels in people with high blood pressure, thereby reducing the incidence of stroke.
Folic acid can not only prevent stroke, but also prevent other diseases such as fetal malformations, Alzheimer's disease, diabetes, chronic kidney disease, etc. The occurrence of these diseases is related to the deficiency of folic acid. Therefore, folic acid is a very important vitamin that the body must take from food and cannot synthesize on its own.
So, how should we supplement with folic acid?
According to the "Chinese Multidisciplinary Expert Consensus on Rational Clinical Supplementation of Folic Acid", the general population is supplemented with 04 1 mg of folic acid is fine, and it can be done by eating some foods rich in folic acid, such as animal liver, eggs, beans, green leafy vegetables, etc. For patients with high blood pressure, 08 mg of folic acid is more appropriate, and can be achieved by taking folic acid tablets or folic acid in combination with antihypertensive drugs. However, do not blindly supplement with folic acid in large quantities, as excess folic acid may lead to decreased immunity and even aggravate degenerative changes of the nervous system.
Cerebral infarction is a type of stroke and the most common cerebrovascular disease in Chinese. Cerebral infarction occurs because a blood vessel in the brain is blocked by blood clots or atherosclerosis, resulting in ischemia and hypoxia of brain tissue, resulting in irreversible damage. According to statistics, 13.7 million people in the world have cerebral infarction every year, of which China accounts for 5.51 million, almost half of the world. Why are Chinese so prone to cerebral infarction? This is mainly related to two risk factors, which are hypertension and atrial fibrillation.
Hypertension is the biggest risk factor for cerebral infarction and the most common chronic disease in Chinese.
High blood pressure puts constant pressure on the walls of blood vessels, causing damage to the lining of blood vessels, which promotes cholesterol deposition on the walls of blood vessels, forming atheromatous plaques. These plaques can cause cerebral infarction by narrowing or even completely blocking blood vessels. Therefore, controlling blood pressure is the key to preventing cerebral infarction.
Patients with high blood pressure should measure their blood pressure regularly, take antihypertensive drugs, follow the doctor's instructions, pay attention to the improvement of diet and lifestyle, reduce the intake of salt, oil and sugar, eat more foods rich in folic acid, potassium, magnesium and other foods that are conducive to lowering blood pressure, such as green leafy vegetables, bananas, nuts, etc., increase the amount of exercise appropriately, maintain a good attitude, and avoid mood swings.
Atrial fibrillation is another important risk factor for cerebral infarction and a common arrhythmia.
Atrial fibrillation is characterized by the loss of regularity in the contraction of the atria and becoming rapid and disordered, resulting in a decrease in the heart's pumping function, stagnation of blood in the heart chambers, and the formation of blood clots. If these blood clots enter the brain with the bloodstream, they can block the blood vessels in the brain and cause cerebral infarction. According to studies, patients with atrial fibrillation have a 5 times higher risk of cerebral infarction than normal people.
Therefore, timely atrial fibrillation is another important measure to reduce the risk of cerebral infarction. There are two main ways of atrial fibrillation, one is drugs, mainly using anticoagulant drugs, such as warfarin, aspirin, etc., to prevent the formation of blood clots, and at the same time, anti-arrhythmic drugs, such as amiodarone, metoprolol, etc., are used to control the heart rate and restore normal heart rhythm.
The other is surgery**, which mainly uses radiofrequency ablation, which ablates abnormal electrical signals in the atria by placing electrodes in the heart, thereby terminating the occurrence of atrial fibrillation. However, both of these modalities have certain risks and need to be evaluated and selected by the doctor according to the specific situation of the patient.
Cerebral infarction is a life-threatening condition that can have serious consequences and even death if left undetected and treated in time. Therefore, we must learn to recognize the precursors of cerebral infarction, seek medical attention in time, and strive for rescue time. There are 5 main symptoms of cerebral infarction, and if any of them appear, you should be highly vigilant.
1. Headache and dizziness
This is the most common symptom of cerebral infarction, due to the lack of blood in the brain, resulting in a lack of oxygen to the brain tissue, causing head discomfort. Generally speaking, headache and dizziness caused by cerebral infarction occur suddenly, and last for a long time, and will not be relieved with rest or medication, and may be accompanied by nausea, vomiting and other symptoms. If there are patients with underlying diseases such as hypertension and diabetes, in this case, they should be alert to the possibility of cerebral infarction.
2. Blurred vision, choking on drinking water
Because certain areas of the brain are damaged, the ability to see and swallow is affected, causing people to see clearly or choke when they drink water. Some elderly people may mistake it for eye or throat problems and ignore the hidden dangers of cerebral infarction.
3. Drooling on one side:
Due to the damage of the motor center of the brain, the muscles of the face or one side of the body cannot be controlled normally, and the mouth and eyes are crooked, the corners of the mouth are drooling, and the speech is slurred. Especially when sleeping, if you notice saliva on the pillow, you should pay attention, which may be a precursor to cerebral infarction.
4. Feeling numbness in the face and stiffness on one side of the body:
Loss or loss of sensation on one side of the face or body due to damage to the sensory center of the brain, abnormal sensations such as numbness, tingling, and burning, or weakness, stiffness, and inability to move the limbs.
5. Unfavorable speech and slurred speech
Damage to the language center of the brain will lead to a decline in the patient's language ability, slurred speech, incoherent speech, and difficulty in comprehension. Some patients may think that lack of sleep or stress is the cause and ignore the danger of cerebral infarction.
Cerebral infarction is a terrible disease, but it is not unpreventable. In fact, 90% of strokes are related to unhealthy lifestyles and diseases, as long as we do a good job of prevention from the following 4 aspects, we can effectively reduce the risk of cerebral infarction:
1. Pay attention to your diet
Diet is an important factor affecting blood pressure and blood lipids, therefore, we should pay attention to the combination and quality of diet, control the proportion of staple foods, and avoid excessive intake of sugar and starch, which will lead to an increase in blood sugar; Eat less foods rich in cholesterol and saturated fatty acids, such as animal offal, fatty meat, cream, etc., to prevent blood lipids from rising; Eat more foods rich in folic acid, potassium, magnesium and other foods that are conducive to lowering blood pressure and preventing blood clots, such as green leafy vegetables, bananas, nuts, etc.; Control salt intake, no more than 6 grams per day, reduce sodium intake, prevent edema and increased blood pressure; Control total calorie intake, maintain an appropriate weight, and prevent obesity and metabolic syndrome.
2.Be active
Exercise is an effective way to lower blood pressure and blood lipids, enhance cardiopulmonary function, improve blood circulation, and prevent cerebral infarction. We should insist on moderate aerobic exercise, such as walking, jogging, cycling, swimming, etc., at least 3 times a week, at least 30 minutes each time, so that the heart rate is kept within the maximum heart rate range of 60% to 80%, so that the brain can get enough blood and oxygen, and at the same time consume excess calories and fat to keep the body healthy.
3. Use your brain more and think diligently
The brain is the most important organ of the human body, and it is also the organ that needs the most exercise. If the brain is not used regularly, it can lead to atrophy and degeneration of the brain, which increases the risk of cerebral infarction. Therefore, we should use our brains more, think more, study more, communicate more, read more, and do more activities that are beneficial to improving intelligence and memory, such as playing some puzzle games, doing some Sudoku or puzzles, etc., so that the brain can stay active and sensitive, and prevent the aging and decline of the brain.
4. Regular physical examination
For high-risk groups, such as patients with underlying diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and atrial fibrillation, it is best to have a physical examination every six months to check blood pressure, blood sugar, blood lipids, homocysteine and other indicators, and timely find and ** abnormalities, and at the same time check the ultrasound of the carotid artery to see if there are signs of atherosclerosis or thrombosis, if so, take timely measures to prevent the occurrence of cerebral infarction.
Cerebral infarction is a terrible disease, but it is not unpreventable. As long as we do a good job of prevention in our daily life, pay attention to diet, exercise, thinking and physical examination, we can effectively reduce the risk of cerebral infarction and protect our brain and life.