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Most strokes are due to hardening of the arteries, which occurs in everyone to a greater or lesser degree as they get older. Hardening of the arteries in the heart can cause a heart attack; if arteries carrying blood to the brain become hardened this can cause a stroke or transient ischaemic attack. Smoking, lack of exercise and eating the wrong foods can all cause more severe hardening of the arteries. People with high blood pressure and diabetes are at particular risk of stroke. Although many people think that stress, emotional upset or working too hard can bring on a stroke there is little scientific evidence that this is the case.

Strokes can also be caused by clots forming in the heart which are then carried in the blood stream and block a blood vessel in the brain. This is more common in people who have an irregular heartbeat (atrial fibrilation).

There are also many other causes of strokes which are relatively uncommon.The doctor will usually do some tests to identify causes of stroke other than hardening of the arteries as some of these other causes need specific treatments.

Do strokes run in families?
Stroke is quite a common problem and therefore it is not unusual just by chance for more than one person in a family to have one. Some families seem to have a greater tendency to suffer both heart attacks and strokes. Sometimes this is related to their genes causing them to have high blood pressure or high fat (cholesterol) levels in their blood, but it may also occur because members of a family may all eat similar things or smoke.

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Last updated 29 June 2009