Aspirin:
From the Daily Dose, by DR. William Campbell Douglass
January 17, 2006
The OTHER killer painkillers, Part 2
Remember a couple of years ago, when an aspirin a day was thought to be a heart tonic? Popping a "harmless" white pill each day for thinner blood and a healthier heart was all the rage, and many doctors still recommend it. Not this one, though.
In fact, more than 2 years ago (Daily Dose, 4/29/03), I sounded the alarm about the deadly risks of "aspirin therapy," citing a University of Maryland Medical Center study in which blood platelet clumping - which can lead to heart attacks - was noted in 64% of daily aspirin-takers whose blood cholesterol levels were considered by modern medical standards as too high (LDL over 130, which leaves out relatively few Americans.)
To recap, my angle in that earlier Daily Dose piece was that if this University of Maryland study is correct, a daily aspirin INCREASES the risk of coronary events in people with healthy (and normal) LDL cholesterol levels of 180, 200, or more.
Yes, you read that right: In case you didn't already know this, I've long maintained - obviously, in sharp divergence with the mainstream - that anyone with an LDL cholesterol number LOWER than 200 risks serious heart problems. In fact, I don't caution anyone to worry about cholesterol at all until their LDL hits 300 or more. (Doctors should look for the real cause of the problem and stop chasing the cholesterol level. Cholesterol is a marker, and a protective mechanism, not a disease.)
As if this isn't bad enough news for those who've been duped by their doctors or the media into taking an aspirin every day for their tickers, consider this: As dangerous as this evidence suggests it is for most Americans with normal blood cholesterol to take aspirin every day, a newer study points to an immediate and grave risk of STOPPING aspirin therapy once you've begun.
According to a May 2004 study rolled out to the American College of Chest Physicians, people who STOP taking daily aspirin once they've been doing it for a while risk serious heart problems at an alarmingly high rate. The research analyzed the medical records of 1,236 people hospitalized for heart attacks and other acute coronary events. Their findings: That more than 10% of people taking daily aspirin for heart reasons were hospitalized within one week of stopping the therapy. The patient's likely interpretation: "Gee, the aspirin was protecting me; I shouldn't have quit." However...NONE of these patients had been hospitalized for heart-related events before they stopped taking their daily aspirin.
Caught in a Killer Catch-22
What's all this mean?
It means you're damned if you do and damned if you don't, basically. If you take daily aspirin for heart health and your cholesterol's anywhere near the modern American norm, you could be risking a heart attack. And if you stop, you could as well.
It doesn't seem too fair, does it? Just like a lot of things in mainstream medicine.
Seriously, folks, I don't know what to tell you here. If you are unfortunate enough to be one of the millions of Americans taking a daily aspirin for heart health on the advice of your doctor, I think you should ask him about ways to safely wean yourself off the blood-thinner without shocking your system into a heart attack.
And from now on, only take ANY painkillers such as aspirin, acetaminophen, Cox-2s, whatever only when you NEED them. Never forget that these are powerful drugs, and should be treated with respect and not overused (or overdosed on).
Loaded for Bayer and shootin' you square,
William Campbell Douglass II, MD
For more information on Aspirin: Dr. Mercola 7/21/2004
For more information on Aspirin: Dr. Mercola 2/2/2005
For more information on Aspirin: Dr. Mercola 5/17/2005
For more information on Aspirin: Chris Gupta 6/4/2003
For more information on Aspirin: Dr. Mercola 6/9/2005
For more information on Aspirin: Dr. Mercola 6/16/2005
For more information on Aspirin: Dr. Mercola 1/7/2006 - Does It Help?
For more information on Aspirin: Dr. Mercola 3/28/2006 - Plavix
For more information on other Painkillers: Dr. Mercola 5/4/2005