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Aspirin

S

Soundgen

Well-Known Member
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146
I was prescribed aspirin at the diabetic clinic and stopped taking it a while ago , now there is a new BBC story about it

Between 2005 and 2008, the DTB said four sets of guidelines were published recommending aspirin for the "primary prevention" of cardiovascular disease - in patients who had shown no sign of the disease.

These included people aged 50 and older with type 2 diabetes and those with high blood pressure.
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8338763.stm
 
I was advised to take aspirin - I never did start. This makes me glad I ignored them!

i wonder how much more back tracking we'll see like this... Maybe this will open up the flood gates for other "mistakes" the "professionals" have made?
 
My consultant stopped my aspirin months ago.

The possible problems far outweigh the benefits in his opinion.
 
None of this comes as any surprise to me. The substance aspirin is actually an acid.

A very good friend of mine used to swear by his half a tablet of aspirin per day (recommended by his doctor). He is not so keen on the idea now, because the aspirin always used to lay on the lower part of his stomach prior to disolving where, over the years it ulcerated to the point of burning a hole in the stomach wall.

The stomach normally renews itself from the outside in, but it seems that the aspirin burns the wall away at around the same speed as it gets replaced. By way of human variation, it turns out that in any individual it will actually be a little faster or slower, the former having an obvious problem.

IanS (who gave up aspirin for headaches immediately afterwards)
 
I don't take aspirin, never have. The best way, however, to take it if you have to, is the dispersible kind and always take it with food.
 
Hi,
I take one asprin tablet daily and have done for some years now. I'm a 43 year old, 13 stone T1 with high BP and high cholesterol - the perfect candidate for a heart attack if the charts are to be believed. My uncle died just last week of a "stroke" followed by a heart attack, caused by the fact that he STOPPED taking the asprin he was adivised to have every day. Suddenly stopping the asprin led to him getting blood clots in his brain and heart. So while there is evedence that asprin CAN be bad for you, stopping it suddenly can also have pretty serious consequenses if you've been given it for a reason.

I would hope that those people who have been given asprin as an anti-coagulant seek advise from their doctor on other options BEFORE they just stop taking it.
 
humph said:
Was the cause of death confirmed by a post mortem?
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Yes. It confirmed both the stroke and heart attack were caused by the blood clotting, giving the lack of anti-coagulant as a "significant" factor. The secondary causes included diabetes and pneumonia.
 
Soundgen said:
If you have heart or stroke problems the article says to take it !
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I'm sure it does but many people just react to a headline. My elderly uncle did. When the story was covered on the radio that fact was not mentioned. I guess they expect people to look into the story deeper before making an "informed" decision, but many don't have the ability to do so do they?
 
I found this out the hard way - 3 days before flying to Florida, I left half my blood in my bathroom, another half (I'd been topped up) in the Assessment Ward before undergoing surgery to repair the hole.

Overall, 9 units of blood. It did have the "benefit" of getting my HbA1c down to 5.5 - had to explain to my practice nurse that I'd had all my blood replaced 3 weeks before so it wasn't really "my" reading. I don't see a full blood change being part of the annual check-up any time soon.
 
Had I had aspirin in my system in July 2003, I might not have had my stroke, or at the very least not suffered a couple of weeks of paralysis and some permanent impairment. NOW I take it
Hana
 
If though the stroke is a result of a brain haemorrhage then aspirin is the wrong thing to take as it thins the blood and would cause even more damage.
 
sugarless sue said:
If though the stroke is a result of a brain haemorrhage then aspirin is the wrong thing to take as it thins the blood and would cause even more damage.
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It seems that the medical staff class the lack of blood to areas of the brain as a stroke whether it is caused by blood loss (as with a leak caused by blood being too thin) or reduction in flow (caused by it being too thick and clotting). The fact that they can now see what the causes is with scans must have prevented many inaccurate diagnosis being made.
 
IanS
Why does it matter that aspirin is acidic?
Many perfectly harmless water based solutions are either acidic or alkaline. It's standard year 7[11yearolds] science to investigate this with litmus or Universal indicator. Just being able to turn litmus solution red, doesn't render it harmful. Most[perhapsa]all fruit juices are acidic. as is the surface of most people's skin..
I spent many years trying to dislodge from kids brains the idea that just because something is acidic, it's bad. Why should anyone be scared of an apple that contains malic acid?
Usually alkalis are more unpleasant than acids. Note the horrid taste of baking soda. Which we happily use in cooking and take as a remedy for an overly acidic stomach.
 
PLEASE!!...will they EVER make up their minds about ASPRO???......first I read it's ideal for thinning the blood to ward off h/attacks/strokes...on the bassis of this,I took on a study/trials..consisting of one 100m aspro tablet(or placebo)...and one capsule of Omega 3 oil(or placebo) per day......to study the affects on diabetics who HAVE NOT got circulatory or heart problems....with the hope in mind to ward off these things!!.......the study is called ASCEND and I've been on it for almost a year now.....but now I'm reading(backed up by the LANCET)that the acidic qualities of aspro can cause holes in the stomach walls!!...which(obviously) I found rather unsettling....are any of our experienced "old hands" familiar with this situation,and what do THEY think????????
 
to study the affects on diabetics who HAVE NOT got circulatory or heart problems.
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The article is quite clear if you haven't got circulatory or heart problems stop taking it , if you have continue !
 
hanadr said:
IanS
Why does it matter that aspirin is acidic?
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Most acidic substances are imbibed as aqueous solutions, such as the various examples that you gave. Unless aspirin is taken in solution, it is usually taken as a tablet, which then sits next to the stomach wall. Now the stomach already contains a very strong acid solution. So strong in fact that it continuously disolves the stomach wall. Fortunately, it continuously renews itself.

It would seem that the problem with aspirin is not actually its acidic qualities that result in holes in the stomach wall, but the fact that it causes ulcers in the wall or even local bleeding. These ulcerated spots are less able to renew themselves, hence in some people the wall can be breached.

Aspirin can also irreversably exacerbate tinitus if you have a tendency towards it.

IanS
 
As most people know, Aspirin can cause ulcers/bleeding to the stomach etc. After suffering an acute angina attack and having 2 stents fitted 4 years ago, I have been taking 2 x 75mg aspirins per day. Prior to my angina attack, I had two bouts of ulcerated stomach due to the fact that I used to take (and still do) Anadin pain killers which contain aspirin (I now take a generic equivalent) as they are the only thing that work on my headaches, which I have had almost my entire adulthood.

After my second bout of stomach ulcers, I was put on a daily dose of omeprazole to 'protect my stomach' from aspirin/aspirin based medication, and I've had no problems. The only time I get stomach problems is if I have drunk too much diet coke or fruit juice, then I just keep off them for 2 or 3 days and my stomach settles down again.

If anyone is having problems with their stomach and aspirin or similar 'ulcer inducing' type medication, it may well be worth asking your GP for omeprazole. I couldn't manage without it.
 
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