Has your doctor recommended that you take a daily baby aspirin despite not having had a previous heart attack or stroke? For years doctors have been recommending that their patients take a baby aspirin (81 mg) daily to prevent those conditions. You may want to rethink that advice according to a recently published study. The ASPREE (ASPirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly) study results were published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
The bottom line is this, if you are a healthy older person with no history of heart attack or stroke taking a daily baby aspirin may actually do you more harm than good. Of particular note the study results indicated that taking the daily aspirin had no significant effect on improving the health of elderly patients or their longevity, however, it showed significant negative effects such as internal hemorrhage or bleeding. Wow! That is an eye-opening result that everyone should be aware of especially if your doctor routinely recommends a daily baby aspirin. The recommendation has not changed however for those patients that have suffered a previous heart attack, stroke or other significant cardiovascular issues.
A lot of confusion with regard to daily aspirin recommendation stems from a misinterpretation of a study done in England back in the 1970’s. That study was a comparison of a group of people taking a daily aspirin and another group taking a buffered daily aspirin in relation to cardiovascular disease, heart attack and stroke. The outcome of that study was that the buffered daily aspirin group had shown beneficial cardiovascular affects while the plain aspirin group did not. So, what was the buffering agent in the daily aspirin that had the significant effects?
It was magnesium! Magnesium is a critically important mineral that has many profound health promoting effects in the body. Over 300 biochemical processes are dependent on magnesium to function properly. Magnesium is the number 1 mineral deficiency worldwide. In relation to osteopenia and osteoporosis it is magnesium (along with other minerals) that is more important to reverse those conditions, not calcium! For good heart health, brain health, bone health and blood pressure magnesium is the key.
The next time your doctor recommends a daily aspirin you may want to ask them about magnesium and its many health benefits instead.