Your brain doesn’t just govern thoughts and preserve memories; it also coordinates all your body’s activities and processes. Damage to delicate brain tissues can cause death or leave you severely debilitated. In addition to protecting your head against impacts, you must also protect the heart and blood vessels that serve the brain.
The more you know about the various ways cardiovascular issues can affect your brain’s health and function, the more effectively you can take the proper steps to keep your brain in optimal condition for many years to come. Take a look at four brain problems that may stem from poor cardiovascular health.
1. Stroke
Obesity, high cholesterol levels, high blood pressure, smoking, and a sedentary lifestyle can all elevate your risk for a stroke. These risk factors encourage fatty plaques and other debris to accumulate along the inner walls of blood vessels. If a piece of that debris breaks away, it can block blood flow to the brain.
Total blockage of a cranial blood vessel can produce a stroke, causing parts of the brain to die and affecting your cognitive, motor, or sensory abilities. A small, temporary blockage can produce a transient ischemic attack, or TIA. Although the stroke-like symptoms pass quickly, a TIA should alert you to address your stroke risk.
2. Vascular Dementia
Blood vessel blockages don’t always trigger major strokes or noticeable TIAs. Many people suffer numerous mini-strokes without even realizing it. In fact, these mini-strokes occur up to 20 times more frequently than major strokes. Over time, the minor damage from these mini-strokes can lead to vascular dementia.
Vascular dementia can occur due to arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries. Even if the plaques lining blood vessel walls don’t break free to create a blockage, they can still reduce the blood vessel’s inner diameter, a condition called stenosis. This reduced capacity can reduce your brain’s access to blood and oxygen.
3. Alzheimer’s Disease
Alzheimer’s disease counts as the most common form of dementia in older people. However, just as blood vessel issues can cause vascular dementia, researchers have also noted links between cardiovascular disorders and Alzheimer’s disease.
Studies indicate that individuals with high blood pressure have a higher risk of Alzheimer’s disease than the general population. These individuals show more evidence of the disease’s hallmark protein tangles and brain lesions. Reduced oxygen flow to the brain may play a role in this vulnerability.
4. Cerebral Aneurysm
An aneurysm involves the expansion of a weak blood vessel wall. This part of the blood vessel can start to balloon outward over time due to normal wear and tear. Eventually, the weakened tissue may rupture. A cerebral aneurysm can bleed into the brain, damaging it. Most aneurysms develop in middle age.
You probably wouldn’t know you had an aneurysm until a spike in blood pressure finally produces a rupture. However, if you have a family history of the problem or just want to play it safe, you can undergo a brain scan to check for a possible aneurysm. Surgery or non-surgical treatment can then eliminate or manage the problem.
Fortunately, you can control most of the risk factors in the four problems above by taking control of your cardiovascular health. A skilled specialist in this field can prescribe helpful medications, dietary and lifestyle changes, or even bypass procedures to help protect your brain and body.
If you worry about maintaining your brain’s wellness, you may need to address any heart or blood vessel disorder that might threaten this all-important organ. The experts at Cardio Vascular Institute can evaluate your condition and provide treatments to keep both your cardiovascular system and your brain in good health. Contact us today.
