High temperatures and air pollution are contributing to rises in strokes across the Middle East and Africa, a study has found.
The regions have among the highest stroke rates worldwide, according to the research, which will be presented at the World Stroke Congress in Abu Dhabi in October.
Globally, about 12 million strokes occur each year, causing seven million deaths, according to the study, published in The Lancet Neurology journal.
Between 1990 and 2021, the number of people having their first stroke increased by up to 70 per cent, while deaths due to the condition rose by up to 44 per cent.
Loss of good health due to strokes also increased by about a third during the period. The Middle East, North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa fared worse than most regions during the period, losing more time due to ill health from strokes.
“From 1990 to 2021, the age-standardised proportion of stroke DALYs [time due to ill health] attributable to risk factors increased in North Africa and the Middle East and sub-Saharan Africa,” said the study, “but did not change in south Asia and South-east Asia, East Asia, and Oceania, and decreased in central Europe, eastern Europe, and central Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as high-income GBD [global burden of disease] regions.”
The rise may “reflect a failure in the control of risk factors” in the regions, said the report. The study identified 23 risk factors, including air pollution, excess body weight, high blood pressure, smoking and physical inactivity.
Top 10 most polluted countries – in pictures
It found the contribution of high temperatures to poor health and early death due to stroke has risen 72 per cent since 1990, a trend likely to continue to increase due to the worsening impact of climate change.
The study also revealed for the first time the high contribution – on par with smoking – of particulate matter air pollution to fatal brain bleeds known as subarachnoid haemorrhage.
“This study is, to our knowledge, the first to show the large contribution of ambient particulate matter pollution and household air pollution from solid fuels to subarachnoid haemorrhage, with a similar [relationship] to that of smoking.”
It found that air pollution in 2021 appeared to be “highly important” to other types of stroke, causing 11.9 per cent of total deaths from all causes, making it the second largest cause of deaths from all causes globally, after high systolic blood pressure.
“These findings are in line with research showing that rises in ambient temperature (including heatwaves) and climate change are associated with increased stroke morbidity and mortality,” added the study.
The Middle East has the world’s highest levels of dangerous air pollution particles, which are responsible for millions of heart disease deaths globally each year, according to a recent report.
The World Heart Foundation (WHF) study found that Kuwait, Egypt and Afghanistan have the worst concentrations of particles less than 2.5 micrometres in diameter (PM2.5), which come from sources that include vehicle exhaust fumes, power plant combustion and burning wood.
Globally, almost 7 million deaths were attributed to air pollution in 2019 – a higher mortality toll than all wars, malaria, tuberculosis, HIV and other infectious diseases combined, according to the WHF.
List of UAE medal winners
Gold
Faisal Al Ketbi (Open weight and 94kg)
Talib Al Kirbi (69kg)
Omar Al Fadhli (56kg)
Silver
Zayed Al Kaabi (94kg)
Khalfan Belhol (85kg)
Zayed Al Mansoori (62kg)
Mouza Al Shamsi (49kg women)
Bronze
Yahia Mansour Al Hammadi (Open and 94kg)
Saood Al Hammadi (77kg)
Said Al Mazroui (62kg)
Obaid Al Nuaimi (56kg)
Bashayer Al Matrooshi (62kg women)
Reem Abdulkareem (45kg women)
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'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
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If you go
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Nairobi, with fares starting from Dh1,695. The resort can be reached from Nairobi via a 35-minute flight from Wilson Airport or Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, or by road, which takes at least three hours.
The rooms
Rooms at Fairmont Mount Kenya range from Dh1,870 per night for a deluxe room to Dh11,000 per night for the William Holden Cottage.
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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50-man Royal Rumble
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Intercontinental Championship Seth Rollins (champion) v The Miz v Finn Balor v Samoa Joe
SmackDown Tag Team Championship The Bludgeon Brothers (champions) v The Usos
Casket match The Undertaker v Chris Jericho
John Cena v Triple H
Matches to be announced
WWE World Heavyweight Championship, Raw Tag Team Championship, United States Championship and the Cruiserweight Championship are all due to be defended
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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