Should Healthy People Take Aspirin?
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Should you take aspirin to protect your health?
A newly published review in US publication - The Medical Letter on Drugs and Therapeutics, has taken an overview on the available evidence on whether a low daily dose of aspirin can protect against heart disease for those who have never previously had any history of heart problems. The story is much more clear cut for those who have already had a heart attack or a stroke.
Recent years have seen new research information published - especially in how women differ from men in respect of heart disease.
The population looked at in these newer studies was healthy, although some of those included had risk factors for heart disease but did not yet have any actual history of heart disease or stroke.
The results showed that if healthy men took low dose aspirin for about six years they had a slight reduction in their risk of heart attack. If health women took low dose aspirin for the same time period then they had a slight reduction in the risk of stroke.
Aspirin however, did not make any significant difference to the risk of dying from heart disease or stroke. Nor did it reduce the risk of dying from any other cause.
So - only marginal benefit from aspirin. What about the risks?
The studies showed that the risks from taking aspirin were substantial. There were increases in major bleeding problems and - in men - an increase in the risk of stroke due to brain haemorrhage among those who took the aspirin.
So what's the message? It seems pretty clear that aspirin can do more harm than good in healthy people who have no previous history of heart attack, stroke or angina.
