Although I like you’re articles for being funny and insightfull, your asprin recommendation does not convince me at all. In short here are some reason’s in random order:
Asprin was invented by the same farmaceutical company’s and doctor’s you seem to detest.
Fruit and vegetables contain the same beneficial ingredients as asprin, but are meant to be eaten by men, unlike asprin, which is as natural as plastics are.
Asprin tends to lower T-levels in men.
Asprin has bloodthinning quality’s (as fruits/vegetables have to some degree), thin blood may turn a non-lethal brain/heart-arrest into a lethal one.
Along with the anti-inflammatory ingredients come a lot of chemicals you don’t want and certainly don’t need. If a product gives you al kinds of gastro-int. problems like asprin seems to cause in a lot of people, you’d be wiser to take this as a signal, that it’s not good for you.
Personally I would always prefer natural i.e. non-farmaceutical solutions, but the point I like to stress is that I find you’re recommendation of asprin a little too lighthearthy especially if there are natural alternatives.
Aspirin IS NOT a “blood thinner!” It is an anticoagulant. Aspirin does not influence on blood volume and makeup. It does, however, lessen the coagulation response of the blood ? it limits the action of the platelets that help form clots ? which is the reason it helps prevent blood clots in the artery from forming. I believe that platelets are the only clotting factors effected by aspirin, I have yet to read or hear of any studies suggesting aspirin has an affect on any glycoproteins involved in plasma coagulation.
Major pet peeve…
-The main ingredient of asprin is acetylsalicylic acid (or salycilates), salycilates are found in fruit and vegetables (esp. apples, oranges, tomatoes, cucumber and tea.)
-Aspirin is acetylsalicylic acid and falls into a class called non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs.
-Due to aspirin’s blood thinning effect it can reduce coronary heart disease events and stroke.
-Research indicates that aspirin will slow the progression of cancer and may prevent it in the G-I tract.
-Research suggests that taking an aspirin a day will either slow the progression of, or even prevent, dementia.
-Aspirin has side effects including a reduction in stomach protection. When taking aspirin people double their likelihood of having a clinically meaningful bad event such as an ulcer.
I’ve got another link for anybody interested in effects and side-effects of asprin. Asprin may be beneficial for some, but for most people it would be wiser to stay away from them.
Make up your own mind though: Intute | Jisc
“Fendrick says individuals who shouldn’t take aspirin on a daily basis include those with very low risk of developing the diseases aspirin is used to prevent. “For these people, such as your typical twenty-something reader of health magazines, the well-documented risks of aspirin overcome any health benefits that may be achieved,” he says.”
I like to think that I’m in better shape than the typical twenty-something reader of health magazines (and a hell of lot smarter thanks to T-Mag) so I think I’ll forego the asprin and stick with my fruits and vegs.
A French pharmacist first isolated salicin from white willow bark in 1829. Scientific investigation continued and in the early 1850s German scientists synthesized aspirin from the related chemical salicylic acid found in meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria). The new drug didn’t catch on for fifty years until the folks at the German Bayer company decided to promote it as an arthritis remedy. Aspirin quickly replaced natural sources of salicin and salicylic acid because it was more potent and caused fewer side effects (salicylic acid can be irritating to the stomach). The white willow tree is thus a prime example of how herbal folk remedies can inspire scientific research and the development of a hugely successful conventional drug.
For every study you find that does not promote its use, you can find 3-4 that does. Also always find out who did the study and why, alot of studies are done in a biased manner so another company can market their product as an alternative(not saying that this is the case here). No 20 something needs to be on aspirin therapy, unless recommended by there doc…for example family history of heart disease, stroke, high BP, etc. One 81mg cap will do way more good than any possible harm.
It’s tricky to diagnose (and more common than most people think), but if you have von Willebrand’s disease, you want to avoid aspirin. It messes up your platelets for up to a month after taking it.
I keep hearing people say that aspirin lowers T-levels, but no one ever sites a study done on this. I am assuming there have been studies done to back this up, can someone please help me out with a link for one of these studies? I have yet to find one.
Asprin is little more than acetosalycilic acid (a specific type of salycilate), Titanium oxide (for that white colour), and some stuff to keep the powder in tablet form. The the tablet itself does not contain “a lot of chemicals you don’t want and certainly don’t need” regardless of what people who fear chemistry have to say!
The pesticides used to grow your “fruits and veggies” (most of them don’t easily wash off) are MUCH MORE harmful to you than the asprin.
Learn the difference between a “blood thinner” and an “Anti-coagulant”.
The reason that some people get an upset stomach after taking asprin is realated to the number of COX1 and COX2 receptors in their body. Salycilates (regardless of thier source…veggies, fruits, or pill) react non-selectively to COX1 and COX2 receptors. (This is why you don’t take asprin when you’re drunk).
THE REASON YOU TAKE A PILL IS FOR CONTROLLED DOSAGE!!! YOU"D HAVE TO EAT GOD KNOWS HOW MUCH FRUIT TO AFFECTIVELY ABSORB THE SAME AMOUNT OF A COMPOUND…NOT TO MEANTION THE TIMING FACTOR!
THE MOST POISONOUS COMPOUNDS IN THE WORLD ARE NATURAL NOT MAN MADE!!! (Ask anyone who works with snake venom, and certain frogs/toads…and yes there are people who do work with these compounds!)
JUST BECAUSE SOMETHING IS MANMADE DOES NOT MAKE IT SIMILAR TO PLASTIC!!! LEARN SOME FUCKING CHEMISTRY!!! (God I’m tired of this stupid ass comment every time someone fears something “not natural”…signed your friendly neighbourhood chemist)
All this said, I’m not an advocate for asprin therapy unless it’s doctor supervised and for a specific reason. Self-diagnosis is a great danger!