According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, someone in the US dies of a stroke every three minutes and 14 seconds. Out of the 795,000 people in the US who have a stroke yearly, 610,000 are first or new strokes. Furthermore, despite the risk of getting a stroke increasing with age, anyone at any age can get a stroke. Looking at the distribution as regards gender, stroke deaths occur about 40 percent in males and 60 percent in females, according to the American Heart Association. So, the question is, why are strokes more common in women than in men?
There are three main factors according to this article from Deseret News. First of all, it takes into account the fact that the likelihood of having a stroke increases with age, and that women, generally, live longer than men. Therefore, statistically, there will be more women reported to have strokes. The second factor involves hormonal changes that also comes with age and with one's lifestyle. And the third is weight gain, which leads to high blood pressure, diabetes, and atherosclerosis, which are all contributing factors to stroke.
To learn more about the signs and symptoms as well as the means of preventing strokes, you may want to check out resources from the CDC and the American Stroke Association.
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