Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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My doctor recommends taking aspirin every day to improve heart health. Any reason not to?

flag	asked Dec 22 2010 at 15:51 AlanBeall 414●3●7

	"Improve heart health" is very vague. I'd ask for clarification on what specific health issues that you have - or are particularly susceptible to - that will benefit from this. – ScottMGS Dec 22 2010 at 16:15
	I left it vague to encompass several possible issues that people might have. My understanding is that aspirin can reduce inflammation and can reduce clotting, and is generally considered a fairly benign method of improving mortality for people with heart problems. – AlanBeall Dec 23 2010 at 16:02

Dexter · Answer 1 · 2010-12-22 16:51:46Z UTC

Ah yes. The conventional wisdom that aspirin thins the blood and therefore makes it more difficult for plaque to build up in the arteries....which therefore decreases the amount of strokes. Or taking aspirin reduces the possibility of a recurrence of a cardiac event or stroke.

If you just change your diet to a truly paleo diet, plaque build up will not occur. And you avoid any internal bleeding in the brain and gut that is reported among the population of aspirin takers. True, the incidence is small, but do you want to take the chance? http://njms2.umdnj.edu/hwmedweb/archives/AspirinBleeding_archive.htm

http://www.themedguru.com/20091103/newsfeature/aspirin-may-trigger-internal-bleeding-86130648.html

Just google "aspirin internal bleeding" for more data on aspirin & bleeding.

Jay · Answer 2 · 2010-12-22 20:20:47Z UTC

Aspirin is a pretty amazing substance. But, I think it's likely redundant with eating a low linoleic acid diet and getting adequate omega 3s. I also think eating right in the first place is superior - aspirin is the band-aid; eating right is the cure.

Based on the evidence there is, I think it makes a LOT of sense to a take a low-dose aspirin unless you are already on (and have been for at least a few months) a strict low linoleic acid diet, ensuring also adequate intake of omega 3s.

PrimalEric · Answer 3 · 2010-12-23 04:05:48Z UTC

Regular intake of aspirin has been linked to digestive problems, including gastrointestinal bleeding.

Improved digestion by healing your GI track is accomplished by removing gut irritants from the diet, things like grains and legumes. Looks like regular ingestion of aspirin could cause similar problems.

TheCommonSenseWarrior · Answer 4 · 2010-12-22 17:00:14Z UTC

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Eating paleo will both reduce inflammation and help with heart health. We got along with out aspirin for thousands of years.

answered Dec 22 2010 at 17:00

TheCommonSenseWarrior
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We got along, but can we do better? Natural is not necessarily optimal. – Korion Mar 17 2012 at 15:29

Lauren · Answer 5 · 2010-12-22 18:06:28Z UTC

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My Mom's oncologist recommended my sister and I take a baby aspirin a day to reduce our risk of breast cancer (which my Mom had earlier this year). Any thoughts on that?

answered Dec 22 2010 at 18:06

Lauren
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Happened to see this same recommendation on Dr. Oz the other day. That guy is terrible. – tylerw Dec 22 2010 at 18:25

I'd bet there's some epidemiological study out there that found a correlation between women who took aspirin and reduced incidence of breast cancer. So maybe there's a link or maybe it's one of a thousand other things. Might as well read tea leaves to get anti-cancer ideas...that said, I could be wrong. I'd be interested if anyone cares to google it or do a PubMed search. – wjones3044 Dec 22 2010 at 19:38

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Why do people answer who just don't know? There was a recently released large RANDOMIZED PLACEBO CONTROLLED TRIAL finding aspirin prevents a decent percentage of cancer. – Jay Dec 22 2010 at 20:17

Per your comment below, Jay, if I've been Paleo (let's say 90%) for 9 months or so, do you think I need to take baby aspirin? – Lauren Dec 22 2010 at 21:08

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If you've got your PUFA intake down very low, then no. Paleo doesn't necessarily concern itself with PUFAs -- so you're eating pork, chicken, avocados, and nuts all day, you're sort of eating paleo, but you're also eating a ton of linoleic acid. If you're eating potatoes, beef, dairy, vegetables, and fruit all day, you're eating paleo and eating little linoleic acid. So, it really depends. I think 9 months of a low linoleic aicd diet is enough to warrant not taking aspirin. – Jay Dec 23 2010 at 15:01

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Geoff · Answer 6 · 2010-12-23 04:25:32Z UTC

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Aspirin can cause Leaky Gut

answered Dec 23 2010 at 4:25

Geoff
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Source? Empty statements like this are NOT helpful. – Korion Feb 20 2012 at 15:23

arthritis.about.com/od/diet/a/leakygut.htm – Geoff Mar 4 2012 at 2:10

Mr. Trashcan · Answer 7 · 2010-12-23 04:38:47Z UTC

Recommendations like aspirin are band-aid remedies geared toward the general public who is assumed to be eating the SAD. If you eat paleo there's no need for it. Personally I want my blood to clot when I bleed.

As far as observational studies go, unless confounding variables are removed, they are largely worthless. When I see a study of the effect of a substance done on paleo eaters I'll take notice. I'm not holding my breath.

score 0 · Answer 8 · 2011-10-14 11:30:38Z UTC

Aspirin is useful only as acute remedy. Chronic use is dangerous, and acute use is dangerous in kids and babies.

Chronic use in adults will produce stomach bleeding for sure and deplete your vitamin C

Its better to just use fish oil. If you have to take it, use vitamin C during the day to prevent bleeding.

Vitamin C has been shown to reduce gastric mucosal damage and gastric toxicity induced by ASA-generated reactive oxygen metabolites [55, 56]. After ingestion, both aspirin and salsalate are rapidly converted ro salicylic acid. Aspirin and salicylic acid can increase urinary excretion of vitamin C, lower leukocyte ascorbic acid levels (by 50%), and decrease its metabolic availability [57 - 60]. The gastric mucosa is the largest depot of ascorbic acid in human body, with ascorbic acid concentrations 25 times higher than in plasma [61]. Some data suggest that aspirin may protect endothelial cells from oxidant damage via the nitric oxide (NO) cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) path way [62,63]. However, gastric epithelial cells require vitamin C to translate inducible heme oxygenase (HO-1) miRNA "into active protein, which then may exert gastroprotection by its antioxidant and vasodilative propertie... Induction of HO-1 is considered to be an adaptive cellular mechanism in response to oxidative stress" [64]. Thus, a significant body of data shows that the oxidative damage caused by aspirin can induce exfoliation of gastric epithelial cells, formation of gastric erosions, and GI hemorrhage. In particular, the gastric mucosa of individuals deficient in vitamin C (and possibly other, synergistic nutrients) might be less able to increase the rate of cell production and therefore susceptible to increased bleeding after aspirin ingestion. Vitamins A, E, and C and bioflavonoids may enhance the "antiaggregative effect of aspirin, prolongate its activity, [and] increase hypocoaguloemia due to reduced releasing of thrombocyte factors 3 and 4 into plasma

Daily Aspirin OK?

8 Answers