Guidelines for healthy eating Fruit. Grain (cereal) foods, mostly wholegrain and high fibre varieties such as breads, cereals, rice, pasta, noodles, polenta, couscous, oats, quinoa and barley. Lean meats and poultry, fish, eggs, tofu, nuts, seeds, legumes and beans.
Fruits: Eat a variety of fresh, frozen or dried fruits each day. Dairy: Choose low-fat or fat-free dairy foods, or a variety of non-dairy calcium-rich foods each day. Protein: Choose low-fat or lean meats, poultry; and remember to vary your choices with more beans, peas, nuts, seeds and fish sources.
You should limit sweets, cakes, biscuits and processed and fatty meats. It's important to also switch the saturated fats in your diet for unsaturated fats and to reduce your salt intake by avoiding high-salt foods like processed meats, salty snacks and ready-made soups, as well as not adding salt to foods.
Apples. Apples are abundant in the soluble fiber known as pectin, which can lower cholesterol levels. Eating low-cholesterol foods is critical during stroke recovery because it could prevent plaque buildup and increase circulation.
To recap, your best choices are hydrating beverages that contain minimal calories, sugar or salt. Reach for water, coffee or tea most often. And keep a water bottle handy – the visual cue reminds you to keep sipping.
Drinking large amounts of green tea or a single cup of coffee each day may reduce the risk of death for people who survive heart attacks and strokes, new research shows.
Avocados. The addition of avocados in daily meals is another good way to help with stroke recovery. The fatty acids in avocados help reduce the risk of inflammation in the body, improve fine motor skills and mental wellbeing.
Eating one serving of dark chocolate per day can increase brain cell growth. The compounds found in this food source repair cells and shield them from further damage. The cocoa powder in dark chocolate can give arterial function a significant boost and lower the risk of a recurrent stroke.
Porridge with milk: Eating warm porridges like oatmeal is an easier way for stroke patients to get grains than bread or rice. Soft scrambled eggs: Eggs contain protein and a variety of beneficial nutrients including choline, biotin, and vitamin B12, and scrambled eggs should be easy to eat.
No significant inverse association between egg intake and stroke risk was observed (RR = 0.92, 95% CI: 0.84–1.01).
Highlights. Milk products, including those that are higher in fat, do not increase the risk of stroke, but instead may reduce the risk; Cheese, in particular, appears to decrease the risk of stroke; Calcium from dairy foods has been associated with a 31% reduction in stroke risk.
Aspirin and other antiplatelets
Most people will be given aspirin straight after having an ischaemic stroke. As well as being a painkiller, aspirin is an antiplatelet, which reduces the chances of another clot forming. Other antiplatelet medicines may be used later, such as clopidogrel and dipyridamole.
How Does a Stroke Impact Life Expectancy? Despite the likelihood of making a full recovery, life expectancy after stroke incidents can decrease. Unfortunately, researchers have observed a wide range of life expectancy changes in stroke patients, but the average reduction in lifespan is nine and a half years.
The Role of Sleep in Stroke Recovery
Quality sleep has many benefits, especially for stroke survivors. Getting a good night's sleep supports neuroplasticity, the brain's ability to restructure and create new neural connections in healthy parts of the brain, allowing stroke survivors to re-learn movements and functions.
Even after surviving a stroke, you're not out of the woods, since having one makes it a lot more likely that you'll have another. In fact, of the 795,000 Americans who will have a first stroke this year, 23 percent will suffer a second stroke.
Dehydration causes your blood to thicken, making flow to the brain difficult. When your blood tries to get through blocked blood vessels, a stroke can occur. Studies show that those who are well hydrated when they suffer a stroke have a greater chance of a better outcome.
High blood pressure is the leading cause of stroke and is the main cause for increased risk of stroke among people with diabetes.
When communicating with a stroke survivor who has communication problems (aphasia), it is helpful to: Be patient. Eliminate distractions. Turn off the TV, limit extraneous noise.