Aphasia - the loss of a previously held ability to speak or understand spoken or written language, due to disease or injury of the brain. Have you ever witnessed the pain in someone's eyes who is struggling with aphasia?  Have you seen people walking down the street with one limb that is non-functional? These are just two of the many possible ramifications of a stroke (aka "a brain attack"). Although I've just spent a month discussing issues related to heart health, I feel compelled to share this startling data that was recently released regarding women and strokes.

A study conducted by Dr. Towfighi, a neurology scientist at UCLA, found that the stroke rate for women has tripled over that last decade for women ages 35-54. 

The "sudden rise in middle age and the reasons behind are ominous" says Dr. Towfighi. Women's waistlines are nearly two inches bigger then they were a decade ago, and this bulge corresponds to the increase in stroke rate! The battle of the belly leads to an increase in visceral fat (fat surrounding internal organs) and contributes significantly to metabolic syndrome. And although men also have shown a growth in girth, for some reason, women had a higher stroke rate.