Revised guidelines on daily aspirin for your heart

I read an article in Health news that reinforced what my Doctor has been telling me for years.

Who should take an aspirin each day to fight heart disease, and at what dose? The latest guidelines say that lower doses are as effective as higher doses and safer at preventing heart attack and stroke.

The new U.S. Preventive Services Task Force guidelines match age and gender. Aspirin seems to be more effective in men for preventing heart attack but, in women, better at preventing stroke.

Dr. Carl J. Lavie, medical director of cardiac rehabilitation at the Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute in New Orleans, added: "The benefits of aspirin use always have to be balanced against the risks. If a patient has low risk of events in the near future, aspirin should not be prescribed. If the risk is very high, clearly aspirin is needed."

The recommendations, published in the March 17 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, state:

Men aged 45 to 79 with heart risk factors should take aspirin if the preventive benefits outweigh the risk of bleeding.

At-risk women aged 55 to 79 should take aspirin if the odds of reducing a first ischemic stroke outweigh the chance of bleeding.

Men under the age of 45 and women under 55 who have never had a heart attack or stroke should not take aspirin for prevention.

At this time, it isn't clear whether patients aged 80 and older should take aspirin.

The task force emphasized that the recommendations only apply to people who have never had a heart attack or stroke.

The last task force recommendations came out in 2002. At the time, the panel acknowledged that the evidence for the use of aspirin in preventing heart problems was still evolving.

A second paper in the same issue of the journal reaffirms the task force guidelines, finding that lower doses of daily aspirin (75 milligrams to 81 milligrams) are equally, if not more effective, than higher doses (100 mg or more) in preventing heart attack and stroke in at-risk individuals

The paper also found that high doses may actually do more harm, especially in people taking Plavix.

According to background information in the study, aspirin is the most used drug worldwide to prevent heart attack and stroke. More than one-third of U.S. adults are believed to take aspirin each day.

"All these trials put together really favor taking lower doses of aspirin," said Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum, director of women and heart disease at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City.

Some Aspirin Products Not Approved by FDA ... Yet

There was an interesting article in HealthDay News.com that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned Bayer HealthCare that they were illegally marketing two unapproved over-the-counter aspirin medications, (Bayer Women's Low Dose Aspirin + Calcium and Bayer Aspirin with Heart Advantage)

The article went on to say that they require an approved new drug application in order to be legally marketed. In addition to being labeled as pain relievers, both products claim to reduce the risk of heart disease. Bayer Women's also claims to fight osteoporosis. Neither product has been approved by the FDA for such uses.

Bayer Heart Advantage combines aspirin and phytosterols, which the label claims helps lower cholesterol levels. Bayer Women's combines aspirin and calcium carbonate.

FDA officials said they weren't aware of any significant adverse events associated with Bayer Women's or Bayer Heart Advantage.

Forbes reported Tuesday that Bayer stood behind both products' claims and said they were not intended to replace professional medical advice. Bayer also said it would respond to the FDA letters in the next 15 business days, as requested by regulators.

It reminds me of the time when ephedra supplements had to be withdrawn from the market in 2004 when the FDA’s final rule banning all dietary supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids, regardless of the recommended dose, came into effect. The ban was lifted a year later in April of 2005.

So, until all the inspections, detections, rejections, and all the other mean, nasty, ugly, stuff is settled, you might want to choose an alternative supplement. If you are currently taking a low dose of aspirin for your heart, and your physician says you also need more calcium for your bones, or your cholesterol is high, you might want to find a something else that has already been tested and determined to be safe.

Is A Daily Aspirin Helpful For Reducing Heart Attack

I have recently seen a number of articles on Aspirin that seem to go against what I thought I knew. A new trial finds that aspirin does not reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke for people with diabetes or peripheral arterial disease.

If you have already had a heart attack, or stroke however, Aspirin clearly is effective in secondary prevention, said study author Dr. Jill Belch, a professor of vascular medicine at the University of Dundee in Scotland. Her report was published in the online issue of the BMJ.

People who had not yet suffered a heart attack or stroke but were at high risk because they had diabetes or peripheral arterial disease (partial blockage of leg arteries), did not benefit from daily aspirin.

Advertisements urging people to take aspirin to benefit the heart are accurate for those who already have had an event, both Belch and Hiatt said.

"It works if you've already had a heart attack," Belch said. "But there is no proof for primary prevention, no proof at all."

"The evidence is solid that aspirin should be given to people with known heart disease, but the evidence for people who have risk factors for heart disease is different." said Dr. William R. Hiatt, a professor of medicine at the University of Colorado, who wrote an accompanying editorial.

Before I had a heart attack, I had a recommendation from the American Heart Association and my family Doctor to take an 81mg. aspirin daily because of a family history of heart attacks and diabetes.

There are some who think that in the future the recommendation may change, but until it does, I think I am glad that I erred on the side of caution, and took my morning aspirin. I still believe it may have helped in lessening the effects when I had my event, and I am convinced that it is right for my situation.

Risks and possible benefits of aspirin for the heart are reviewed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

How much water should I be drinking?

I have had some people ask about how much water is enough so the quick answer is, Government guidelines say 8 glasses of water a day, but your height, weight and the size of the glass all make a difference.

Most people urinate an average of 1.5 liter a day and you lose another liter of liquid through breathing and sweating.
You get about 20% of your water every day through food, so a general rule is to drink 2 liters of water a day. This is the equivalent to a large bottle of soda, or three and a half pints.

If you're feeling thirsty you're already dehydrated so don't wait until you need a drink, sip small amounts throughout the day to keep yourself hydrated. Factors, such as exercise, weather, illness, or if you're pregnant or breastfeeding all make a difference in how much you need to increase your water intake. The best way to know is to listen to your body.

You can get a certain amount of water from tea, coffee and carbonated drinks but they're all what are called diuretics, which make you go to the bathroom more, as well as increase the amount of water your body uses. They also don't quench your thirst like water does either. That doesn't mean you can't drink them, tea has other health benefits, but it just means that you'll have to drink more water as well.

If you're worried you're not drinking enough, measure how much you're drinking for a few days to see if it's anywhere near the minimum amount. Check how often you go to the bathroom, and your urine color. If it's pale and clear then you're drinking a healthy amount. If it's dark yellow and cloudy you might be dehydrated or not drinking enough.

I hope this helps.

Naturally, Water is Healthy for Your Body!

Who hasn't heard that you should drink more water. I certainly have, but I also have a hard time getting through a recommended amount every day. I realize that almost two thirds of my body is made up of water, and if I don’t replenish what I lose I start to suffer.

Government guidelines say we should drink at least eight glasses a day and some nutritionists claim that up to 80% of us are walking around dehydrated! This lack of fluid could affect your health, your weight and even your job so here is why you need it to stay healthy.

Water helps with weight loss.

Water naturally reduces your appetite. Many people confuse feeling thirsty with feeling hungry so they eat when their body wants them to drink something. When you're dehydrated, fat cells become harder to break down and so if you’re trying to diet it’s a lot harder if you don't drink very much.

Water stops headaches and dizziness.

Don't reach for the aspirin right away, your headache could be a symptom of being dehydrated so drinking water should make it go away. Even tension headaches and dizziness, which can be brought on by fatigue can be cured or helped by drinking water. Fatigue is also a sign of dehydration.

Water clears your skin.

Yes drinking more water can be good for clear skin and it can also help the symptoms of acne. If you're skin is dry, drinking water will give it more moisture, and flush toxins out of your body, along with anything else that shouldn't be there, like dirt and bacteria.

It fights infections.

Drinking water can help fight infections all over your body, not only because it flushes out toxins but because when you're dehydrated you're more likely to catch a bug. This is especially true for getting rid of and preventing urine infections and kidney stones. Being well hydrated is also great for allergies and colds because it clears the airways. Even cold sores can be reduced by drinking more water because they tend to pop up in places where your skin is particularly dry.

It keeps you regular.

If you suffer from constipation or piles you may have been told to increase how much fiber you eat. This is definitely one way of getting rid of the problem but you'll need to drink more water for the fiber to work properly. Otherwise it could have the opposite effect and make things worse.

It makes you exercise better.

We all know to replace the fluids you lose when you sweat with water, but what might not be obvious is that your body works better and harder during your workout if you drink water.

It improves concentration.

Our brain is made of around 85% water, so if you get dehydrated it can affect your concentration and even your short-term memory. Where was I? Oh yeah, water has a particularly strong effect on your math skills, because lack of water causes your brain's energy levels to decrease.

It boosts your energy.

In the same way that not drinking enough water makes your brain slow down it has the same effect on your body.
Assuming your muscles are around 75% water, your bones are about 22% and your blood is about 83% water. If you're dehydrated, all these body parts don't work as well as they should, and as a result, you lack energy and feel tired or lethargic.

It supports your heart.

Your heart is the hardest working muscle in your body, and needs a lot of water to keep it going efficiently. When you get dehydrated your blood gets thicker, and the heart has to work even harder. And if your heart is weak it can lead to more serious heart problems later in life. Personally I help this along daily with a 81 mg. aspirin each morning.