Risk factors

Some risk factors for a transient ischemic attack and stroke can't be changed. Others you can control.

Risk factors you can't change

You can't change the following risk factors for a transient ischemic attack and stroke. But knowing you're at risk can motivate you to change your lifestyle to reduce other risks.

• Family history. Your risk may be greater if one of your family members has had a TIA or a stroke.
• Age. Your risk increases as you get older, especially after age 55.
• Sex. Men have a slightly higher risk of a TIA and a stroke. But as women age, their risk of a stroke goes up.
• Prior transient ischemic attack. If you've had one or more TIAs, you're much more likely to have a stroke.
• Sickle cell disease. Stroke is a frequent complication of sickle cell disease. Another name for this inherited disorder is sickle cell anemia. Sickle-shaped blood cells carry less oxygen and also tend to get stuck in artery walls, hampering blood flow to the brain. However, with proper treatment of sickle cell disease, you can lower your risk of a stroke.

Risk factors you can control

You can control or treat a number of factors — including certain health conditions and lifestyle choices — that increase your risk of a stroke. Having one or more of these risk factors doesn't mean you'll have a stroke, but your risk increases if you have two or more of them.

Health conditions

• High blood pressure. The risk of a stroke begins to increase at blood pressure readings higher than 140/90 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg). Your doctor will help you decide on a target blood pressure based on your age, whether you have diabetes and other factors.
• High cholesterol. Eating less cholesterol and fat, especially saturated fat and trans fat, may reduce the plaques in your arteries. If you can't control your cholesterol through dietary changes alone, your doctor may prescribe a statin or another type of cholesterol-lowering medication.
• Cardiovascular disease. This includes heart failure, a heart defect, a heart infection or an abnormal heart rhythm.
• Carotid artery disease. The blood vessels in your neck that lead to your brain become clogged.
• Peripheral artery disease (PAD). The blood vessels that carry blood to your arms and legs become clogged.
• Diabetes. Diabetes increases the severity of atherosclerosis — narrowing of the arteries due to accumulation of fatty deposits — and the speed with which it develops.
• High levels of homocysteine. Elevated levels of this amino acid in your blood can cause your arteries to thicken and scar, which makes them more susceptible to clots.
• Excess weight. Obesity, especially carrying extra weight in the abdominal area, increases stroke risk in both men and women.

Lifestyle choices

• Cigarette smoking. Quit smoking to reduce your risk of a TIA and a stroke. Smoking increases your risk of blood clots, raises your blood pressure and contributes to the development of cholesterol-containing fatty deposits in your arteries (atherosclerosis).
• Physical inactivity. Engaging in 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise most days helps reduce risk.
• Poor nutrition. Reducing your intake of fat and salt decreases your risk of a TIA and a stroke.
• Heavy drinking. If you drink alcohol, limit yourself to no more than two drinks daily if you're a man and one drink daily if you're a woman.
• Use of illicit drugs. Avoid cocaine and other illicit drugs.