Lifestyle and Brain Damage in Hypertension

Healthy lifestyle delays the onset of several cardiovascular risk factors such as hypertension, obesity, diabetes, and dyslipidaemia and reduces their progression to clinical cardiovascular disease such as stroke and cognitive decline. Healthy lifestyle habits may modify the activity and expression of several genes associated with this cardiovascular risk factors contributing to reduce cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Healthy lifestyle includes a balanced diet with moderate salt intake, potassium supplementation, regular physical activity, reduction of alcohol consumption, weight control, and avoiding tobacco use. The adoption of healthy lifestyle together with pharmacological treatment is recommended by all guidelines for primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and renal events and mortality. It is generally assumed that the adoption of some lifestyle changes such as losing weight, adherence to DASH diet, reduction of salt (sodium chloride) in the diet, augmentation of potassium intake, regular physical activity and structured exercise, moderation of alcohol consumption, and stopping tobacco use are able to reduce premature cardiovascular and cerebrovascular morbidity and mortality. This chapter shows and discusses the available evidence on the beneficial effects of healthy lifestyle in the prevention of brain damage including stroke and cognitive decline.