A cardiologist has warned against healthy adults taking aspirin daily.
Like most over-the-counter painkillers, the anti-inflammatory drug is widely popular for treating headaches, body aches and relieving symptoms of common colds. Aspirin also has the added benefit decreasing the risk of strokes and heart attacks at lower doses.
The versatility of aspirin has led to more than two million Brits taking the drug daily, according to MailOnline, while certain pharmacies have even reported widespread shortages of the painkiller due to demand.
Even US President Donald Trump is in on the trend, with the 79-year-old saying he takes aspirin daily as he doesn't want 'thick blood pouring through my heart'.
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However, one cardiologist has warned that popping aspirin every day may not be beneficial for everyone.
According to the NHS, low-dose aspirin is recommended by doctors to people who've either had a stroke or heart attack or are at a high risk of one. This is because the painkiller works as a blood thinner, hence Trump's fears about thick, chunky blood, but recent research has suggested daily aspirin may have little benefit for people who don't have existing circulatory issues.
"For patients who’ve suffered a heart attack or stroke in the past, then there’s still a good argument for taking daily aspirin," Professor Malcolm Finlay, a consultant cardiologist at Barts Heart Centre in Central London, explained to MailOnline.
"But, for everyone else, there’s very little benefit."
In fact, the side effects may outweigh the benefits.
What are the side effects of taking aspirin?
Common side effects of taking daily, low-dose aspirin include mild indigestion and becoming more prone to bleeding.
However more serious side effects such as coughing up blood and seeing blood in the toilet after you go are signs that you should see a doctor immediately.
Other serious side effects include:
- painful joint (a sign of high uric acid levels)
- swollen hands or feet (water retention)
- jaundice (sign of liver problems)
Aspirin is also not advised for people who have asthma, as the drug can trigger wheezing and other respiratory symptoms. Meanwhile one GP even claimed that aspirin and other anti-inflammatory drugs could cause erectile dysfunction.
Professor Finlay went on to explain that aspirin was in the past the best possible drug for decreasing the risk of heart attacks and strokes, developments in drugs mean this is no longer the case.
He also suggests that diet and exercise can be 'more powerful tools than aspirin' without causing any side effects.
"These side effects are no joke. You could have a bleed in the stomach, which can be a horrid few days of pain. Or, if the bleed happens in the brain, that could be life-threatening," he added.
Topics: Health
Brenna Cooper