Just a reminder that we have our check in at 6pm today. Chance to catch up reconnect, check your blood pressure and chat about all things stroke prevention. Just click the link in the calendar section of the app/website.

At the group I am organising speaker's from time to time Can anyone recommend anyone who would eto come along .

Sleep is an important but often overlooked factor in stroke risk. Sleep is not a luxury. It is an important pillar of stroke prevention, alongside: • Blood pressure control • Physical activity • Healthy diet • Smoking cessation • Managing conditions such as atrial fibrillation and diabetes Research shows a U-shaped relationship between sleep and stroke risk.In simple terms, both too little and too much sleep are linked to a higher risk of stroke. Large population studies suggest that sleeping less than 6 hours or more than 9 hours regularly is associated with increased cardiovascular and stroke risk, with around 7–8 hours per night being the optimal range for most adults. 📉 Short Sleep (Less than 6 hours) Short sleep is associated with a higher risk of stroke and may contribute through: • Higher blood pressure • Increased inflammation and oxidative stress • Impaired blood vessel function • Increased risk of atrial fibrillation, diabetes, and high cholesterol 📈 Long Sleep (More than 9 hours) Long sleep is also linked to higher stroke risk. It is often a marker of underlying health issues rather than a direct cause, and may be associated with: • Poor sleep quality • Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) • Underlying medical conditions • Lower levels of daytime activity ⚠️ Sleep Is Not Just About Time Sleep quality matters just as much as sleep duration. Other sleep problems linked to stroke risk include: - Snoring and sleep apnoea - Insomnia - Excessive daytime sleepiness - Poor sleep quality - Irregular sleep patterns 🌅 Daily Habits to Improve Your Sleep ☀️ Morning - Set Your Body Clock • Get natural daylight within 30–60 minutes of waking • Wake up at the same time every day (even weekends) • Delay your first coffee by 60–90 minutes • Move your body even a 15–20 minute walk helps ☀️ Daytime - Protect Your Sleep • Stop caffeine by early afternoon (around 1–2 pm) • If you nap, keep it short (20–30 minutes) and before 3 pm • Take small breaks to manage stress during the day

8ú modern sense. It's not about: ❌ Calorie counting ❌ Cutting out entire food groups ❌ Drinking expensive green powders ❌ Surviving on lettuce Instead, it's a pattern of eating traditionally seen in countries such as Greece, Spain, and parts of Italy. It typically includes: ✅ Lots of vegetables ✅ Fruit ✅ Beans and legumes ✅ Nuts and seeds ✅ Whole grains ✅ Extra virgin olive oil as the main fat source ✅ Fish and seafood regularly ✅ Moderate dairy (often yoghurt) ✅ Limited ultra-processed foods ✅ Limited sugary drinks and sweets ✅ Less red and processed meat ✅ Social eating One of the most important studies ever performed on diet was the PREDIMED trial. Researchers studied over 7,000 people at high cardiovascular risk and put them on either: 🥄 A Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra virgin olive oil 🥜 A Mediterranean diet supplemented with mixed nuts 📋 A control low-fat diet Crucially, the nuts and Olive oil groups received a supply of the nuts or oil every month so we can be confident they ate more of these than their usual. After around 5 years of follow-up, the Mediterranean diet groups experienced roughly a 30% reduction in the combined risk of heart attack, stroke, or cardiovascular death compared with the control group. Stroke reduction was one of the strongest signals seen in the trial at nearly 40% reduction. And this isn't just one study. A major BMJ systematic review and network meta-analysis (essentially a study pulling together data from all the high quality research on the topic that could find to give very reliable results) examining randomised dietary programmes found that Mediterranean dietary programmes reduce death, heart attacks, and cardiovascular events in people at increased cardiovascular risk. Importantly, they also reduce stroke risk. Why might it work? The Mediterranean diet appears to improve many of the key drivers of stroke and cardiovascular disease: 🩸 Blood pressure 🧈 LDL cholesterol 🔥 Inflammation 🍬 Blood sugar control