Aspirin is a safe, effective pain reliever and anti-inflammatory drug that’s been used extensively for more than a century. And as I reported yesterday, we now know a simple, low-dose of daily aspirin clearly reduces your cancer risk. (When it comes to colon cancer, it reduces risk by up to 40 percent.)
Plus, research conducted over the past few decades also consistently links daily, low-dose aspirin (80 mg per day) with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, the No. 1 cause of mortality in the U.S.
But last May, the FDA rejected Bayer HealthCare’s application to market aspirin for the prevention of heart attacks. It even issued a public health advisory that a review of the evidence showed no support for the general use of aspirin for the primary prevention of heart attack or stroke.
Yet nearly every private medical organization–including the American Heart Association–endorses the use of aspirin for this purpose. Plus, nine major clinical trials over the last 15 years looked at the use of daily aspirin on heart disease. And the evidence is clear that daily aspirin use reduces the risk of heart attack and doesn’t increase overall mortality that might be associated with bleeding.
As I explained yesterday, aspirin does carry a risk of GI bleeding because it acts as a blood thinner. And chronic use is associated with a higher risk of bleeding, especially in the digestive tract.
Nevertheless, the FDA’s ruling on aspirin demonstrates a blatant double standard…
First of all, aspirin’s bleeding risk is very low for people under the age of 70. Plus, the drugs the FDA does approve to lower heart disease risk–such as statins–are far more dangerous than aspirin. Not to mention the fact that these cholesterol-lowering drugs have questionable benefits to begin with.
In fact, over the past 10 years–as millions of people have been placed on these drugs–researchers have observed one definite effect: statin users stop paying attention to diet and end up gaining weight. We call this the “statin gluttony” effect. And it clearly increases a patient’s risk of heart disease while trading for the questionable “benefits” of statins.
More than 80 million American adults suffer from cardiovascular disease. And many of them take a drug to deal with chronic pain as well. In fact, about 30 million use non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) daily as it is.
But new research shows that NSAIDs and cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) inhibitors actually increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
Patients at increased risk from these drugs include anyone with atherosclerotic arterial disease, ischemic cerebrovascular disease, and coronary artery disease. Also, anyone who’s had a heart attack or cardiac bypass surgery runs an increased risk with these drugs.
In addition, as I reported in my Insiders’ Cures newsletter, up to 2 percent of patients who take “safe” and “approved” NSAIDs run an increased risk of GI bleeding. The risk of NSAID-induced bleeding is higher among the elderly. And they’re most at-risk to begin with for increased GI bleeding.
So, while the FDA shuts the door on aspirin for prevention of heart disease, they leave us with other “approved,” yet dangerous drugs. Such as toxic statins that don’t actually prevent heart disease mortality, and other “approved” pain-relievers that actually increase the risk of heart disease and can cause GI bleeding.
Here’s another thing to keep in mind…
Hundreds of millions of children and adults have tolerated taking aspirin for more than a century to relieve pain and inflammation. Big pharma can’t make that claim for any other drug. Much less for a cardiovascular disease drug.
Plus, as I reported earlier this week, new research shows aspirin also reduces colon cancer risk by up to 40 percent. (Yet the government and mainstream leave us with dangerous and costly colonoscopies.)
Anyone concerned about heart disease or cancer should consult with their physician about the benefits of a healthy diet and body weight, exercise, and the possible use of daily, low-dose aspirin. You should also consult with your doctor about using aspirin for pain–instead of all the toxic, newer pain relievers.
But remember–no pill is a substitute for engaging in healthy, moderate exercise and following a healthy diet. Even aspirin.
Sources:
- “Cardiology Conundrum: Aspirin for Primary Prevention,” Medscape (www.medscape.com) 8/18/2014
- “Low-dose aspirin for primary prevention of atherosclerotic events in patients with type 2 diabetes: A randomized controlled trial,” JAMA 2008; 300:2134-2141.
- “The Prevention of Progression of Arterial Disease and Diabetes (POPADAD) trial: Factorial randomized placebo controlled trial of aspirin and antioxidants in patients with diabetes and asymptomatic peripheral arterial disease,” BMJ 2008; 337:a1840
- “Aspirin for prevention of cardiovascular events in a general population screened for a low ankle brachial index: a randomized controlled trial,” JAMA 2010; 303:841-848
- “Effects of intensive blood-pressure lowering and low-dose aspirin in patients with hypertension: principal results of the Hypertension Optimal Treatment (HOT) randomised trial. HOT Study Group,” Lancet 1998; 351:1755-1762
- “Randomised trial of prophylactic daily aspirin in British male doctors. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1988; 296:313-316
- “Thrombosis prevention trial: Randomized trial of low-intensity oral anticoagulation with warfarin and low-dose aspirin in the primary prevention of ischemic heart disease in men at increased risk,” Lancet 1998; 351:233-24
- “Collaborative Group of the Primary Prevention Project. Low-dose aspirin and vitamin E in people at cardiovascular risk: A randomized trial in general practice,” Lancet 2001; 357:89-95
- “Final report on the aspirin component of the ongoing Physicians’ Health Study,” N Engl J Med 1989;321:129-135