An aspirin a day?

An aspirin a day has been a recommendation to reduce the risk of a heart attack for so many years that it is often repeated in the media and self-help books and web sites. There are many people who have taken it upon themselves to take a baby aspirin everyday even though their doctor has not recommended it.

I have a sister who does it. Maybe you know someone who also does it. Maybe you even do it.

Is this a good thing to do? Maybe not.

According to a new study done by Dr. Gerry Fowlkes of the Wolfson Unit for Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease in Edinburgh Scotland, this may not be good advice.

Dr. Fowlkes recently presented a study to the European Society for Cardiology in Barcelona Spain in which he described how he and his colleagues followed 3,000 men at a very high risk for developing heart disease for an average of eight years.

The group was divided in half and randomly assigned to take either an aspirin every day or a placebo.

There was no difference between the two groups in the rate of heart attacks or stroke, or risk of death from any cause after eight years.

There were no discernible health benefits for taking an aspirin a day.

There were 34 major bleeds in people taking the aspirin and only 20 in the placebo group. Looking at the internal bleeding so serious it required hospitalization, the risk was almost double for the aspirin users compared to the placebo users.

For otherwise healthy individuals the risk of taking aspirin outweighs the benefits.

If you have already had a heart attack, scientists cautioned that the benefits of taking aspirin might outweigh the risks.

Investigate natural alternatives rather than rely on a drug to reduce your risk of heart disease. Clinical studies have shown that as little as 500 mg/day of omega-3 fatty acids, from fish or supplements, can reduce the risk of a second heart attack in someone who has already had one heart attack by 30-40%.

The Landmark Study showed that people who have used Shaklee supplements for 20 years or more have 1/3 the incidence of angina, heart attack, stroke or congestive heart failure as do people using other company’s multivitamins or no supplements at all. ( Guess what? I was part of the 20 year study!)

It sure makes you think about the choices we have in our our health care, doesn't it?