In today’s “just when you think you understand stuff” news,
the FDA dropped a bomb on Bayer and released an advisory that is certain to
confuse the millions of people who have been religiously taking aspirin to ward
off heart disease and strokes.
Their advisory,
which is based on an analysis of multiple major studies, concludes that there
is not adequate evidence to support the use of aspirin for primary prevention —
meaning using some therapy to prevent a cardiovascular event among people who
have no prior history of any such ailment. The agency’s advisory did not change
its recommendation for secondary prevention — the use of aspirin to prevent
additional cardiovascular events in patients who have already had a stroke or heart
attack.
ACSH’s Dr. Josh Bloom explains, “All drugs have some side
effects. With aspirin, these include gastric irritation, ulcers, and bleeding.
When these are compared to the benefits to people who already have heart
disease, the risk becomes acceptable. But when there is no demonstrated
benefit—as the FDA has concluded—then the benefit to risk ratio is unknown. And
possibly zero.” ….To Read More
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