Lyndsay Burginger
You can stop buying low-dose aspirin at the store, a new study has concluded that taking a daily regimen of aspirin could do more harm than good. For years medical professionals have been suggesting that adults over the age of 50 take baby aspirin to prevent a heart attack or stroke, however, today the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association are reversing the recommendation, stating that adults with low risk of heart attacks risked gastrointestinal bleeding. That bleeding outweighed any benefits the baby aspirin had.
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The study, which was published in the New England Journal of Medicine, studied 19,114 people in Australia and the United States aged 70 years or older, with the median age being 74. Half of the participates were given a daily dose of aspirin and the other half were given placebos. None of these participants had a history of heart disease and were healthy when entering the trial. In the end, the test was concluded by stating that daily aspirin use did not prolong “disability-free survival” and led to a higher rate of major hemorrhage than participants taking the placebo.
Dr. Roger Blumenthal, co-chair of the 2019 ACC/AHA Guideline on the Primary Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, said in a statement: “Aspirin should be limited to people at the highest risk of cardiovascular disease and a very low risk of bleeding.” In essence, the only people that should be taking aspirin every day are people with a history of heart attacks and people who have been told by their doctor to take the medication.
The American Heart Association shares that the best way to prevent cardiovascular disease is lifestyle changes. Taking part in regular physical activity and eating a healthy balanced diet filled with fruits and vegetables is beneficial for your heart health and can lower your risk of heart disease.
If you feel you are having a heart attack, call 911 and chew an aspirin. Symptoms of a heart attack include pressure in the chest, sweating, nausea, pain in the neck, arms, back and shoulders, and dizziness. Warning signs can happen hours to weeks in advance, so if you feel like you are having a heart attack, call 911 immediately.
