Think you’re too young to experience serious health problems? Think again. Health conditions like strokes, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and early onset of dementia can strike at almost any age.
Are you keen to learn more? Stay with us as we discuss some of the health problems you’re never too young to develop.
Stroke
What is a stroke? Commonly caused by a blockage of blood and oxygen supply to the brain, a stroke is a medical emergency that can cause considerable brain damage. After experiencing a stroke, deterioration of brain function can manifest in many areas, including:
- Difficulty speaking, communicating, and processing language.
- Loss of balance and coordination which impacts a person’s ability to walk.
- Reduced or blurred vision.
- Paralysis of different parts of the body or face.
So, how early in life can you have a stroke? Often, we think of stroke as something that only happens to older adults. But the truth? You can experience a stroke at any age – even as a young adult.
Type 2 Diabetes
Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body doesn’t produce sufficient insulin. Why is this a problem? The body needs insulin to transport glucose into our blood cells from our bloodstream. An insulin deficiency means glucose can build up in the blood, which can be harmful. For this reason, people diagnosed with type 2 diabetes will usually need to boost their insulin levels by injecting insulin into the blood, or by taking diabetes medication.
Depending on your lifestyle, you can develop type 2 diabetes from as young as your early teens. But why are some people more predisposed to developing type 2 diabetes than others? Type 2 diabetes has been linked to individuals who are overweight or obese, or who are not physically active. The good news? Suppose you have been diagnosed with prediabetes. If that is the case, you can reverse it and intercept its development into type 2 diabetes before it’s too late. How? By changing your lifestyle, and making healthier choices like implementing a more balanced diet and a regular exercise routine.
High Blood Pressure
Also referred to as hypertension, high blood pressure is a serious health risk. It has the potential to cause strokes, heart attacks, and other health problems. If you have high blood pressure, some of the symptoms you might experience can include:
- Shortness of breath.
- Frequent nose bleeds.
- Constant headaches.
Although the risk of developing high pressure increases dramatically as we get older, it can still be experienced from a relatively young age – even as young as 18 years old – especially if you have a family history of hypertension.
Dementia
An illness that is often associated with old age, dementia is a disease of the brain that is characterized by extreme memory loss, as well as speech and language processing difficulties, and a general deterioration of cognitive functioning.
While aging is a major factor in the development of dementia, early-onset dementia can develop in people under the age of 65 – even from as early as 30 or 40 years old.
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If you think you’re too young to develop certain health conditions, sadly, you’re wrong. The truth is that several illnesses, diseases, and health conditions commonly linked to getting older can also develop in younger life. As discussed today – the risk of experiencing a stroke, or developing type 2 diabetes, hypertension, or dementia is not just for the elderly. Many of these conditions can arise at almost any age – as young as 18 years old in the case of high blood pressure, or in the 30s when it comes to dementia.
If you believe that you or someone you know could be at risk of experiencing any of these conditions, be sure to consult with an industry-accredited physician, or a licensed nursing practitioner who has completed requisite qualifications in the field such as online PhD programs in nursing. In addition to this, it pays to look after our health as best we can. By making healthy lifestyle choices, looking after our diets, and exercising regularly, we can in many cases minimize our risk of developing the health conditions that are usually reserved for the elderly.
