As stroke cases soar, charity urges people to act to reduce risks

Warning over high blood pressure, diet and smoking

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Claire Arnopp being visited in hospital by her daughters Niamh, centre, and Isla, right. Claire had a stroke in December 2024

(Picture: Claire Arnopp/PA Wire)

Someone will have a stroke every three minutes without urgent action on prevention and care, warns the Stroke Association.

Nearly 414 people will have a stroke every day in the UK - that's one person every three and a half minutes - by 2035 unless the public, NHS, and the Government tackle prevention.

The Stroke Association is expecting the number of people having a first or second stroke to increase to more than 151,000 a year by 2035.

Currently, 280 people have a stroke every day in the UK, which is one person every five minutes.

Stroke destroys people's lives and every day in the UK, it leaves around 240 survivors at risk of being unable to see, speak, move, or even swallow.

It is also the fourth leading cause of death in the UK. As the UK's population ages, more people are living with long-term conditions which increase the risk of stroke.

This includes high blood pressure, which is the cause of around half of all strokes.