Aspirin: The Elixir of Life?
At last we have found the elixir of life, more or less. It is called aspirin.
Previous elixirs of life have, of course, proved illusory; the historian of Chinese science, and Maoist fellow-traveler, Joseph Needham, published a list of emperors who died poisoned by their supposed elixirs. Indeed, Maoism itself was once supposed to be an elixir of life. Here, for example, is something published during the Cultural Revolution:
Under the guidance of the great thought of Mao Tse-tung, the Mao Tse-tung’s thought medical team of the Chinese P.L.A. Unit 3125 treated 105 students of the Fuhsien School for Deaf-Mutes in Liaoning Province, enabling all of them to recover their hearing and speaking faculties. Now everyone of them can cheer “Long live Chairman Mao!” and recite quotations from Chairman Mao. After some training many can already sing The East Is Red and recite Chairman Mao’s “good old three” articles. This is a tremendous achievement gained in the upsurge of struggle-criticism/transformation of the great proletarian cultural revolution.
It turns out that the elixir of Maoism killed incomparably more people than the old superstitious emperors’ elixirs; so that now we are more modest in our hopes.
Three recent papers in The Lancet propose the benefits of low-dose aspirin both in the prevention of certain cancers and in their spread once they have developed. Professor Rothwell, of Oxford University, was the main author of all three papers, but this should not affect their validity or otherwise.
The first of the papers compared the rates of cancer deaths in those who took part in randomized controlled trials of daily low-dose aspirin to prevent cerebrovascular events (strokes). The risk of cancer death was reduced by something like 15 percent in those who took long-term aspirin. The longer the aspirin was taken, the stronger the protective effect.
In the second of the papers, the authors analyzed the effect of low dose aspirin on cancer metastasis (the spreading of cancer beyond its original site). The aspirin was also given in controlled trials to see whether it reduced the incidence of stroke; among those who were given aspirin and subsequently developed cancer, the chances of metastasis — a leading cause of death from cancer — was 36 percent lower than among those given a placebo and who subsequently developed cancer
In the last of the papers, the authors used a case control study to demonstrate that those who took low-dose aspirin (but not in controlled trials) were at lower risk of developing colorectal cancer than those who did not; aspirin also protected against the development of esophageal and stomach cancers.
Does this mean that those of us who have reached the age of cancer — the incidence of cancer rises with age — should all be taking low-dose aspirin prophylactically? There is no indubitably correct answer to this question, and it all depends on your scale of values. In the first trial, about 35,000 people had to take aspirin for five years in order that 100 cancer deaths were avoided. Would you take a pill daily for five years for a 1 in 350 chance of saving your life?
True, the tablet is a small one, but the papers did not set out to answer the question whether taking it daily for a long time resulted in any bad outcomes other than stroke and cancer. I, alas, shall not be taking it, though for purely personal and psychological reasons. I so detested the taste of aspirin as a child that I have only to think of aspirin to make myself feel really sick. My best friend, on the other hand, adores the taste of aspirin. Perhaps he is lucky. And aspirin is very cheap.
Ahh…dear Theodore: try ORANGE-flavored aspirin!
Bayer has quick release crystals (think powdered cool aid). You open packet and pour down your throat. I keep them in the car for when I get a traffic headache and for 1 kid that can’t swallow a pill without gagging. We love them
I thought the same thing Ed when I read the post. I take one St. Joseph orange flavored aspirin every morning letting it dissolve under my tongue so as to enter the blood stream quicker and I have no complaints. And I think the comedian Steven Wright, in typical Wright fashion,sums upthe reason why so many of us look for that longevity pill when I once heard him say that one of his goals was to live forever, so far, so good!
)
> I so detested the taste of aspirin
I also found the taste of old fashion full dosage aspirin to be extremely bitter. And, as a child I suspect I did not swallow fast enough. (the old fashion aspirin also seemed to be very soft and quickly dissolved in mouth)
I don’t remember the brand, but the tiny “adult low dosage” aspirin I take every morning has a hard coating and has no taste whatsoever. My doctor advises its use to avoid strokes.
Aspirin is a super drug for pain and injury if you use nothing stronger. As someone who has pent his life in an occupation that can have occasional incidents of violence and a continual exposure to trauma, I can attest to the pain controlling properties of aspirin. Now that I am on the backside of the 60′s decade, and the accumulative effects of a lifetime of injuries is beginning be an ongoing reality, the low dosage aspirin regimen seems to be a good idea, in order to contend with the onset of minor arthritis and the remote possibility of avoiding certain cancers.
Enteric coated. The aspirin is not dissolved until it passes through the stomach. I take enteric coated aspirin and fish oil, another elixer. No taste going down, no burping taste later. Yet, eventually we are all dead in this life. Better than pills is Spiritual health and life.
Amen.
I recall several years back a university study indicating that regular moderate consumption of dark beer provided the same cardiovascular benefits as low dose aspirin. On the assumption that there just might be a similar benefit against cancer, I’ll continue to shun the aspirin & instead enjoy my daily Guinness.
I’m with you SpearWolf. The “alcoholism is a disease” mentality has so infected our medical community that most doctors would never suggest alcohol for the health benefits. But I think there is reason to think it is as effective.
Odd that aspirin, long past any patent protection, started getting bad medical press about the time that patented alternatives (acetaminophen, ibuprofen) appeared.
Another amazing biproduct from that amazing resource-OIL.
Careful, Obama will ban it.
and the FDA will ban it as an OTC drug. Can’t have people live longer under the
“Joseph Mengele Panels” of ObamaCare.
OIL?
Acetylsalicylic acid is derived from salicylic acid which is plant derived.
Actually, aspirin is synthesized industrially from reagents derived from coal tar (acetic anhydride is used as a base stock in the most common synthesis).
Neither oil nor willow bark are involved as a source of raw materials.
Can the government force everyone over 50 to take one low-dose a day to save $150 billion in health costs?
Yes; ENTERIC COATED, low dose/baby aspirin. Unless you chew it, or let it dissolve in your mouth, you’ll never taste it.
Keeping low dose/baby aspirin in your pocket or purse is recommended in case you suspect a heart attack.
Chewing low dose/baby aspirin at the onset of a heart attack, has been known to prevent death and more serious cardiovascular damage.
Article here, with aspirin recommendation about half way down the page:
http://www.cardiac.sutterhealth.org/health/conditions/heart_attack.html
Is there a certain age that men should start a daily low-dose aspirin regime?
Delia, no joke…but the cliche applies here: ask your doctor. (over 40 or 50 at least)
Thank you, Ed. My husband just turned 50 and I was actually thinking about this very subject before I read this post today. Amazon.com has some Kirkland Signature (generic brand) 2 bottles – 365-Count Enteric Coated Tablets for less than ten dollars. I’m going to try and convince him to get on a low-dose aspirin regime (wish me luck ha-ha)!
Yes, your husband should check with his doctor before starting daily aspirin use. For some people, aspirin can cause problems. My wife quit taking it because it caused tinitus (ringing in her ears). She also bruised very easily. Other people with problems like stomach bleeding probably should take aspirin.
I have a strong history of heart disease in my family and take aspirin every day. Whether or not it’d be a good idea for your husband or you* to take aspirin is a matter to discuss with your doctor.
*Remember, the leading cause of death for women is heart disease.
Sound advice! Thank you, Larry. My husband already suffers from tinnitus, so, aspirin might make it worse. Yikes!
Delia,
I cannot urge you strongly enough to have your husband checked to see if he even needs to take an aspirin a day. One size fits all medicine is dangerous and criminal, imho. Have a COMPETENT health practitioner test your husbands blood to see if he even NEEDS to take salicylic acid. Blackberries contain salicylic acid and are MUCH SAFER than aspirin. I don’t care who makes that synthetic crap. Salicylic acid can cause internal bleeding.
Read a book called ‘The Serpent and the Staff’. It’s an eye opener.
Thank you, Chris. Hubby and I love blackberries and they grow around here in the Northwest like crazy (and FREE).
I appreciate your input.
I am not so sure that simply bypassing the stomach avoids the potential for gastro-intestinal bleeding. Way back when, thinking that aspirin was nothing more than a benign pain killer – as that was how it was marketed – I took a little too much of it and almost bought the farm. Turns out aspirin can bore a hole almost anywhere and found a spot near an artery in the colon. Had not my wife (girlfriend at the time) stopped in and found me about to go into shock, I would have been toast.
The long term protection against heart attack, cancer and stroke seems to be from other studies done that the side effect of over all lower inflamation in the body. Which explains the need for long term use to get the full effect.
I am a regular reader of Theodore Dalrymple. I always take an aspirin an hour before reading him and another an hour after reading him.
See? He’s savin’ your life!
Taking 10 hours to read him would put you right on schedule.
When I take aspirin, I chew them. They take effect faster that way.
Isn’t that harder on your esophagus though??????
What is a low dose? Is body size a factor?
Low dose is usually considered ‘kiddy aspirin’ or aspirin that is around 81 mg.
I’m curious as to weight/size too. Good question!
These studies are so flawed. If humans were designed to require daily aspirin regimen to sustain life, there would have evolved an edible food source of it. The aspirin thing is pure nonsense, and is no way provable. Why don’t these studies include non-aspirin takers? If they did they will find non-aspirin taking people to be remarkably healthy.
I was sucked into that aspirin myth for years, and my health continued a downward spiral. Out of frustration I quit taking aspirin and ALL pharmaceutical concoctions over 10 years ago. At age 64 I am healthier now than I was then. And I have not had so much as a single headache since. The only “healing remedy” I take now is unadulterated whole foods. No processed chemical concoctions… just real food.
OK, I’ll stand back now and listen to the pro-drug med-freaks tear me a new one on this. Big pharma owns them, and I’ve heard their silly rants all too often. The difference, however, is I’m healthy and pain free… and I’ll bet they are not.
Wow! That is very sobering.
“there would have evolved an edible food source of it.”
Yes, like slippery elm bark.
Not slippery elm bark, but rather, willow bark.
I think you are making Tom’s point for him. Most humans do not eat bark. Just because a source occurs in nature, that does not necessarily make it a food source.
If the patent for aspirin expired many years ago, why would “big pharma” be pushing it? I’m just asking. I thought the big bucks were in the proprietary medicines.
If ‘Big Pharma’ is recommending it, in my opinion, it is already suspect. And there is a food product which contains salicylic acid naturally, blackberries. And you can grow them yourself.
Damn, no money for the greedy rat bastards in ‘Big Pharma’. F*CK those parasites!!
You are scientifically incorrect.
Just like every other species, humans evolved to be good at one thing–reproduction, hence spreading their genes into the environment.
But after you’ve had all the children you’re going to have, evolution quits. Evolution doesn’t care about creatures that don’t reproduce. Hence we’re prone to all kinds of diseases like cardiovascular disease that didn’t affect our ability to reproduce earlier in life.
It’s to extend our lifespans way past the time of reproduction that aspirin is needed.
BTW, we need Vitamin C all our lives, yet unlike other species we don’t synthesize our own Vitamin C. A deleterious mutation in apes caused this, which was never fixed because humans became smart enough to find Vitamin C in the environment.
Tom Sochor, you’re painting with too broad a brush (aspirin is cheap….thus, how is this a Big Pharm plot?). Also, your personal example is at best anecdotal; it ain’t science.
For the rest of you: What about the risk of hemorrhagic stroke from taking a daily dose of aspirin? Is that a legitimate worry?
Well it may not be a big pharma plot, but do you really think advocating taking a cheap pill doesn’t help sales of more expensive pills, and the medical community that believes in them? Of course it does. You need to be comfortable taking the pills they tell you to take when they tell you to take them. This is the medicalization of health, and massive profits flow from that. Oh and that’s why they won’t tell you a couple of beers or wine a week will do the same thing as has been pointed out.
Well Tom, I had better be careful disagreeing with you in case you think me silly. I will say that one counter example does not disprove a theory, and I’ll also say that humans were not designed to live as long as we do. Better stop now before I end up with a 3-paragraph rant.
“Out of frustration I quit taking aspirin and ALL pharmaceutical concoctions over 10 years ago. At age 64 I am healthier now than I was then.”
Pretty strong “study” there;)
Interesting info on aspirin here: http://her2support.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=41755&highlight=Aspirin
Anecdote-based medicine. Harrumph!
Tom Sochor:
Plants don’t evolve to give us something that we already need but have no source for … wow, hard to even type that sentence. We evolve to take advantage of what’s there.
My dad had CML leukemia, Dr. Druker invented Gleevec, my dad was the 13th person to ever take it and is now alive and spry at 80 years old. Haven’t found any seeds for the Gleevec bush so I must have imagined it’s beneficial effect on my father.
Actually Gazzer, Tom’s account may be self-referential, but so is yours. There have been some studies in the last decade to indicate that the human body should naturally be healthy till about 125 years. It is what we do to ourselves (and here the speculation abounds on WHICH things we do to ourselves are referred to) that shortens our lifespan.
YOu can eat and exercise to your heart’s content but stress is more and more attributed to disease. No question that mega media 24/7 communication, with no down time and scarcity of sleep, are life shorteners.
There is no one magic cure all. Boring as it is, moderation is the key. Ask your 103 – 115 year olds. They have habits and they often have very philosophically simple outlooks.
I think stress/depression definitely can effect the immune system and a person’s lifespan.
I’ve learned to meditate when I get upset or sad or angry and it has helped me immensely with regards to my overall health.
I’ve found that the best way to relieve stress is to find a liberal…and choke the ever loving s**t out of him. Works wonders at restoring my equilibrium.
Just make sure nobody is filming it on their cellphone! lmao
That’s how others also seeking relief find more liberals!
LGoPs;
I feel better just reading your post.
Man, what a wonderful therapy!! Think we can get some federal funding to do a ‘hands on’ study to test the efficacy of this therapy?
And you didn’t need a pill. Modern medicine has done some truly wonderful things, but too many doctors are more concerned with their net worth than your health.
Jeannie is right: moderation in all things (except sex and alcohol, of course). I am ninety years old and am in good shape, better shape than many younger people that I know. To you men: always be nice to the ladies and never refuse a drink.
It’s all luck. Do what you want;)
What? You mean that no matter what I do, I’m going to die some day?
If you go totally DEMOCRAT, you can cheat death, as well as the IRS, and get away with it.
Me? I’m just too damned crazy to try that!
LOL You are quick Delia. My perfectly fit 58 yr old husband keeled over in SIX days from pancreatic cancer while his sickly father lived to 98. Don’t worry about your health ~ worry about your soul:)
Yikes. I’m sorry about your husband. That’s awful. I think death at a younger age is scary because I don’t like the idea of unfinished business and missing out on loved ones. If I died by some freak accident tonight, I would leave a lot of loose ends and people who need me behind which makes me sad to even contemplate.
I almost never take OTC pain medication. I never really believed much in it except for severe cases of agonizing pain (like an ear infection or tooth-ache or broken bones). I can take a good deal of pain as part of life without feeling the need to numb myself from it.
There are people who live to a ripe old age smoking and drinking a few shots every morning. Maybe part of it is genetic? Longevity is great so long as you have your mental faculties. Living in a diaper, with bed sores and being tube-fed must be hell on earth. That’s how my wonderful grandmother went.
Death sucks.
If asprin were invented today it would be a prescription drug.
Healthy people do not need to take asprin to prevent future illness. People with risk factors may benefit. It is a very usefull drug with some risks.
Consult your health professional.
“Health professional”? About as qualified as your local community politician, and just about as knowledgeable about MEDICINE.
SOME PHARMACISTS PRACTICE MEDICINE. YES; practice medicine.
But, some politicians are better at voodoo medicine than your local pharmacist. Then again, some medical PhD’s have become senators! You don’t need a PhD to become a Congressman. Should you need a minor in political science to get an MD?
Decisions, decisions.
By and large, my experience is that pharmacists tend to be more knowledgeable and more forthcoming regarding the potential negative aspects of drugs.
That said, when it comes to prescription drugs, the so-called “M.D.”s being churned out by academia at this point seem limited in their ability to whatever is stored in their PDA. This is especially true for psychiatrists, who spend 15 minutes with a patient, scroll through their PDA screen, and prescribe “anti-depressants” for symptoms that are more likely to be nutrition-related or which would be better treated using behavior therapy. That this now includes prescription of anti-psychotics, anti-depressants and other chemicals that alter CNS function FOR CHILDREN – before the brain has even fully formed – is cause for great concern. Yet few are even aware of this phenomenon.
Also, thanks to the way insurance reimbursement has corrupted the medical practice, we now have lower-cost APRNs happily prescribing prescription drugs with only a modicum of academic hours devoted to pharmacology. Their reference, again: PDA.
VOILA!
That’s what a pharmacist is supposed to do. IT’S THEIR JOB to know drug interactions.
Believe it or not, medical doctors know this too, and have a history of your symptoms, health condition, prior maladies, surgeries, family history, and illnesses.
That’s why, in warnings for drugs and side effects, they say to “see your doctor”, and not “see your pharmacist”.
The problem with that is the specialization of medicine.
I take drugs prescribed to me by several different specialists for several different health conditions. Each specialist isn’t all that knowledgeable about drugs from vastly different specialties.
But my pharmacy is my “one stop shop.” And on a couple of occasions, my pharmacist detected and warned me about a potentially risky drug interaction between the medication prescribed by one specialist and the medication prescribed by another specialist.
The pharmacist is also more knowledgeable about environmental issues: Will this medicine survive travel in subfreezing conditions? Will this medicine survive travel in scorching hot conditions?
That’s why you should ALWAYS get ALL your prescriptions filled at a single pharmacy.
Right, sinz54;
THAT is the responsibility of the pharmacist. Using the same pharmacy is good practice.
A friend was given the wrong prescription at a nation wide pharmacy a few years ago. He could have died a slow agonizing death had he not discovered the mistake. Naturally, he sued, was compensated; But, his health will never be the same.
If you are taking medications from several doctors, specialists or otherwise, IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO MAKE SURE THEY ALL KNOW WHAT MEDICATIONS YOU ARE TAKING.
Hey, this was in Reader’s Digest in 1965.
The problem with taking aspirin to thin the blood is the same as the problem with taking prescription thinners. The decrease the chances of getting an ischemic stroke, and increase the chances of getting a hemorrhagic stroke –which is more dangerous! This is not news.
Wake up people. Just because the drug is cheap doesn’t mean anything. Medicalizing health isn’t a good thing. Drinking moderately is safer. Oh but wait! You could be genetically coded to be an alcoholic! Well if you believe that I’ve got some swampland to sell you. What these studies really sell is fear. Fear that if you don’t do what the latest biased studies show it will be the worse for you. It won’t. It’s crap. These studies cherry pick data to scare you into the loving arms of the clinicians. Oh, but aspirin is cheap? The whole medical industry including your doctor are smiling when you take any pill.
My mother always dissolved aspirin in water in a spoon with sugar (I was prone to nasty headaches even as a young child). To this day I associate the word “bittersweet” with that concoction.
As long as the studies are not from any of the universities that were found by Amgen to have papers in studies that were totally trumped up lies.
Aspirin is the first real medicine synthisized by man.
This is utterly irresponsible at best and downright criminal at worst. Giving medical advice to undiagnosed people, Are you out of your everlovin’ mind?
Salicylic acid is a blood thinner. My father’s IDIOT MD told him to take an 81mg aspirin daily to prevent stroke, or whatever he heard on television. My Dad, trusting that this BLITHERING IDIOT knew what he was talking about, followed the doctors recommendation. Fast forward a few years and I’m talking to the old man and he starts bleeding out through the unbroken skin on his left cheek, ala “The Masque of the Red Death”. Now, I’m no MD but I can’t believe this kind of crap goes on. Salicylic acid is produced naturally in blackberries. So, if you have an insatiable need to follow ‘medical’ advice to make yourself feel better, eat some blackberries. You can grow them yourself, in a pot, if you want to. They are not dangerous and will still help thin your blood. Or you could just start eating a healthier diet.
I refuse to pay for the medical care of ignorant people who are led around by their nose so easily, Dad is an exception, I owe him.
Perhaps habitually relying on a pill isn’t the smartest thing to do. Allopathic medicine has done a tremendous amount of good for mankind, but, a prescription drug isn’t always the answer. In closing, doctors will admit that there is more unknown in the medical field than known. Caveat Emptor
Drink not water/but have some wine for thy stomache’s sake
Rise not up early for strong drink
For drinking maketh a man merry
etc
physician heal thysef
Thirteen years ago, I was able to take advantage of some of the wonders of modern medicine when I had an angioplasty and three stents implanted in my left anterior descending artery (The Widowmaker). My cardiologist said afterward that if he could give one simple suggestion to EVERYONE over the age of thirty, it would be for them to take an aspirin a day for the rest of their life. That one simple act would do more to reduce heart problems than any other thing that a person could do. I have followed his advice ever since and have tried to pass on this piece of advice to all I know.
Thank God for Easter:) That’s the kind of HOPE & CHANGE I can believe it!
I am an adult. I take a baby aspirin daily (81 mg and prescribed by my doctor which I can buy over the counter). I don’t taste it. I put it at the back of my throat and then with a slight push of a finger I push it over the edge and gravity makes sure that it falls down my throat. My sister taught me that and a nurse taught it to her. I follow it with water which I swallow. So I can’t say I have ever tasted aspirin.
My previous doctor had me take 1/2 or 1 whole aspirin a day along with my multivitamin (another thing everyone should probably taking daily). My new doctor strongly endorsed that as well.