Daily Aspirin: How Low Should You Go?

Approximately 50 million people take aspirin every day to prevent cardiovascular events such as stroke or heart attack. So, is more better? Not necessarily.

A recent study indicated that the difference beween taking a 'baby aspirin" (81 mg) a day, vs an adult or whole aspirin (325 mg) is negligible. Both prevent platelets from clotting; thus, preventing stoke or heart attacks. However, there is a difference with bleeding ulcers from the stomach or intestines (mostly the stomach).

Almost a million people taking daily aspirin of 325 mg will experience GI bleeding. 18% of these episodes result in hospitalization and an astounding 68% result in death.

Although GI Bleeding can occur at any dosage of aspirin, the risk increases exponentially as the dose increases. As most aspirin is bought over the counter; it is imperative that we start to educate the American public about the adverse affects of long term use of aspirin, and how to mitigate some of the adverse events.