As Hailey Bieber suffers stroke at 25 the 8 signs you must never ignore
HAILEY Bieber was hospitalised last week with fans shocked to find out it was due to a stroke at the age of 25.
One in four people who suffer a stroke are younger than 55, so it’s vital you know the signs, even if you consider yourself too young to be at risk.
Hailey, a model based in the US, said she suffered “stroke-like symptoms” before being taken to hospital.
In a statement posted in an Instagram story, Hailey said she was eating breakfast with her husband and music artist Justin Bieber last Thursday when she felt ill.
Doctors discovered she had a small blood clot, which caused her lack of oxygen.
This suggests she had an ischaemic stroke - the most common type before a haemorrhagic stroke.
Read more on stroke
However, Hailey said she recovered within a few hours and later returned home, which suggests she could have had a mini-stroke.
A mini-stroke, formally called a transient ischaemic attack (TIA) is a stroke that causes symptoms for a short amount of time, as the blockage to the brain is only temporary.
Hailey described the incident as "one of the scariest moments I've ever been through", but said she was “so grateful and thankful” to the hospital staff.
The NHS says you're more likely to have a stroke if you're over 55.
Most read in Health
However, around one in 4 strokes happen to younger people (under 25), and there are 400 cases in children every year.
Strokes are preventable by living a healthy lifestyle - that’s quitting smoking, cutting don on alcohol, exercise and eating well.
But this can’t completely remove risk.
Family history, ethnicity, and medical history all play a role, and these are not changeable.
The Stroke Association says some aspects of women’s lives can increase the risk of a stroke, like the contraceptive pill, pregnancy and having migraines.
Overall, more women than men have strokes in the UK, which is partly due to the fact they statistically live longer than men.
The signs
The easiest way to remember the three main signs of a stroke are with the FAST test.
This is:
- Facial weakness: Can the person smile? Has their mouth or eye drooped?
- Arm weakness: Can the person raise both arms?
- Speech problems: Can the person speak clearly and understand what you say?
- Time to call 999: if you see any of these signs.
These are the three most common signs of a stroke.
But there are other signs to be wary of.
These include:
- Sudden weakness or numbness on one side of the body, including legs, hands or feet.
- Difficulty finding words or speaking in clear sentences.
- Sudden blurred vision or loss of sight in one or both eyes.
- Sudden memory loss or confusion, and dizziness or a sudden fall.
- A sudden, severe headache.
Getting help for someone having a stroke immediately is vital because it can cause long-lasting effects.
It causes part of the brain to shut down, starving it of oxygen.
This may leave people with long-term difficulties with speech, memory, concentration, spatial awareness and more.
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Read More on The Sun
It can leave a lasting psychological effect, as the Stroke Association say most people will experience “some kind of emotional change” after a stroke.
Some 100,000 people have strokes each year, and there are 1.3 million stroke survivors in the UK.