The next time you blow your nose or drink a cup of coffee or even have sex, beware — these may temporarily raise your risk of getting a stroke, a new study has claimed.
The Dutch study, published in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association, identified eight main triggers that appear to increase the risk of intracranial aneurysm (IA) — a weakness in the wall of a brain blood vessel that often causes it to balloon.
If ruptures, it can result in a subarachnoid haemorrhage which is a stroke caused by bleeding at the base of the brain.
Other regular activities that may cause a stroke included vigorous physical exercise, straining to defecate, being startled, being angry and drinking cola, found the study.
“All of the triggers induce a sudden and short increase in blood pressure, which seems a possible common cause for aneurysmal rupture,” said lead researcher Monique H.M. Vlak of the University Medical Centre in Utrecht, the Netherlands.
“Subarachnoid haemorrhage caused by the rupture of an intracranial aneurysm is a devastating event that often affects young adults,” Vlak said.
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Newlyweds to visit California
London: Britain’s Prince William and his new wife Kate will be visiting the United States in July at the end of their first official foreign trip as a married couple, his office said on Thursday.
The new Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will visit California from July 8-10, St. James’s Palace said.
The 28-year-old second-in-line to the British throne has never visited the United States in an official capacity, although he has made private trips to the country in the past. Kate has never been there, royal officials said. —Reuters