Get moving to reduce stroke risk

Australians are being urged to get physical and spend less time sitting down to significantly reduce their risk of having a stroke.

Stroke Foundation has welcomed a study by South Australian researchers and San Diego State University that has found even slightly increasing physical activity can have a huge impact on your health.

The research found that people who spend 13+ hours a day sedentary or sitting down exhibited a 44 per cent increase in risk of stroke compared to those who are more active.

It also revealed that 25 minutes of moderate-vigorous activity significantly decreased the stroke risk, in some instances by 43 per cent. Light physical activity was also associated with reducing stroke risk.

Stroke Foundation South Australia State Manager, Luke Hays, says all Australians, regardless of their age, should prioritise physical activity.

“Being active daily, whether it’s walking the dog or going for a swim, goes a long way in reducing the likelihood of having a stroke because it reduces those key risk factors like high blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes.”

According to Stroke Foundation’s No Postcode Untouched report, which maps stroke incidence, prevalence, and risk factors, more than 3 million Australians were physically inactive in 2020. That is 15 per cent of the total Australian population aged 15 years and over.

Mr Hays says that needs to improve.

“ That’s still a large portion of the population that is physically inactive so Stroke Foundation encourages Australians to get physical and limit the amount of time they’re spending sitting down. We know that
incidence of stroke in working age adults is rising, largely due to a more sedentary lifestyle so any steps we can take to change that should be taken.”

A link to the research can be found here

A link to Stroke Foundation’s No Postcode Untouched report is here.