Forget everything you thought you knew – an aspirin a day will not keep the doctor away, new study shows
Team of researchers who spent seven years studying 19,000 elderly people in Australia and the United States have published findings in New England Journal of Medicine
An aspirin a day is not likely to reduce the risk of a first heart attack or stroke among healthy elderly people, a new study shows.
A team of researchers from Monash University in Melbourne published their findings from a seven-year study in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine, on Sunday.
The study of 19,000 elderly people in Australia and the United States looked at whether millions of over 70s around the world who take 100mg low-dose aspirin to preserve good health are deriving any benefit by doing so.
The ASPREE (Aspirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly) trial found an aspirin a day did not prolong life free of disability, or significantly reduce the risk of a first heart attack or stroke among participants – “with little difference found between the placebo and aspirin groups”.
According to principal investigator Professor John McNeil, head of Monash University’s Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, the results of the trial will result in a rethinking of global guidelines relating to the use of aspirin to prevent common conditions associated with ageing.
“Despite the fact that aspirin has been around for more than 100 years, we have not known whether healthy older people should take it as a preventive measure to keep them healthy for longer,” McNeil said. “Aspirin is the most widely used of all preventive drugs and an answer to this question is long overdue. ASPREE has provided this answer.
