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It
has been common practice to order aspirin for prevention of heart disease
and stroke for several years. Men and women take it even without a doctor’s
recommendation. Most take a baby aspirin or 81 mg. Studies on cardiac
therapy have been done extensively in men but now we have a 10 year Women’s
Health Study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Here are
the key findings of the study.
• Overall aspirin did not reduce the risk of a first heart attack
or death from cardiovascular disease in women under the age of 65. Over
the age of 65 it reduced the risk of heart attacks by 34%.
• Aspirin reduced the risk of ischemic stroke (the most common type)
by 24% on the average but most of the benefits were seen in women over
65.
• Women taking aspirin were more likely to have gastrointestinal
bleeding, a well-known and potentially serious side effect. To put this
in perspective, among the 20,000 women taking aspirin, 51 ischemic strokes
were prevented over 10 years, but an extra 160 cases of gastrointestinal
bleeding occurred.
In light of these findings women over 65 or those who are at risk should
consider aspirin therapy. For women under 65 aspirin’s benefit remains
unproven unless they have already had a heart attack.
For people who are at risk for heart attack or stroke which includes a
family history of heart disease, high blood pressure, high cholesterol,
obesity, diabetes, inactivity, smoking, the recommended therapy is 4 fold:
• Aspirin
• Cholesterol lowering drugs called statins
• Beta Blockers which block the toxic effects of adrenaline thus
lowering heart rate and blood pressure
• ACE Inhibitors which inhibits the production of the hormone angiotensin-2,
thus improving the flow of blood through the vessels and reducing inflammation.
Yearly physical exams with history, checks on blood pressure, cholesterol
and possibly heart stress tests will determine whether you are a candidate
for this therapy.
Life style changes do help people who are at risk for heart attacks but
studies have shown that it is not nearly as effective as the medicines
described above.
Information
taken from the Berkeley Wellness Letter and the findings of many cardiologists
described in the book “Before It Happens to You” by Jonathan
Sackner Bernstein, M.D. available in the Church Library under Health Ministry.
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