The Hidden Truth About Aspirin

wiggles92

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I'm not an avid aspirin user, but appreciate the measurable improvements to health and wellbeing from ingestion. Some forum members have seemingly had significant problems with aspirin.

In particular, this interpretation of John Vane's research was interesting. Is this theory bunk? I might look at his work myself further, but those with more comprehensive knowledge of aspirin may be helpful.

It was pharmacologist John Vane who discovered the good and bad actions of aspirin. On one hand, he found that it blocks the production of an enzyme known as COX (cycloxygenase). Downstream, this prevents inflammation, swelling, pain and fever. But, he elucidated a risky trade off.

Aspirin also stifles the formation of healing compounds. Crucial for physiological support, they protect the stomach from damage by hydrochloric acid, maintain kidney function and stop internal bleeding. Vane won the Nobel Prize for his work.

See here for the full article.
 

jaguar43

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I'm not an avid aspirin user, but appreciate the measurable improvements to health and wellbeing from ingestion. Some forum members have seemingly had significant problems with aspirin.

In particular, this interpretation of John Vane's research was interesting. Is this theory bunk? I might look at his work myself further, but those with more comprehensive knowledge of aspirin may be helpful.



See here for the full article.

I never understood people taking aspirin for the pain killer effects. I don't think it's useful in that way. It's possible that willow bark seem to have other substances in it.

But it does protect the endocrine system from certain inflammatory signals. The stifling of healing compounds doesn't seem to be make sense. What does that even mean ? This looks more like a public relation campaign against Aspirin.
 

Drareg

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Nice click bait title, were the illuminati or the flat earners involved?
That's too complex let's blame the immigrants!
Here try this-http://raypeat.com/articles/aging/aspirin-brain-cancer.shtml
 
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wiggles92

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Nice click bait title, were the illuminati or the flat earners involved?
That's too complex let's blame the immigrants!
Here try this-http://raypeat.com/articles/aging/aspirin-brain-cancer.shtml

chill mateyy
 
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wiggles92

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I never understood people taking aspirin for the pain killer effects. I don't think it's useful in that way. It's possible that willow bark seem to have other substances in it.

But it does protect the endocrine system from certain inflammatory signals. The stifling of healing compounds doesn't seem to be make sense. What does that even mean ? This looks more like a public relation campaign against Aspirin.

That's my first impression too (public relation campaign). I'm not sure what percentage of forum members take aspirin as a supplement, but I bet it's quite low. It's always possible Peat got something wrong. Sometimes I find it difficult to accept aspirin can have such potent health benefits, without any significant drawbacks. Have you read John Vane's aspirin studies, or do you know where I could find something he's done?
 

aguilaroja

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...Have you read John Vane's aspirin studies, or do you know where I could find something he's done?
Yes, John Vane worked out (around 1971) some of the relation of aspirin to prostaglandins, and shared a Nobel prize for the work.
John Vane - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Vane's discovery of the mechanism of action of aspirin changed our understanding of its clinical pharmacology. - PubMed - NCBI
Reading wiki pages about prostaglandines and cyclooxygenase would be a start
Prostaglandin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
PTGS1 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

That helped establish the dogma about COX-1 and COX-2 inhibitors. In the late 20th century, this line was used to devise and market many non-aspirin anti-inflammatories, with strong commercial incentive to bash aspirin. Ibuprofen (Motrin) and Naproxen (Aleve) eventually move to over the counter sales.In common expression, many people and health care workers say NSAID referring primarily to the different non-aspirin drugs.

As may be known, all of the non-aspirin NSAIDs have safety problems. The later selective COX-2 inhibitors are not entirely safe for the digestive system, and have other hazards.

The danger statistics cited by Ellis do not clearly convey that the large majority of those events are due to NON-aspirin drugs. It has been well known for decades that "NSAID" use contributes to thousands of deaths and tens of thousands of hospitalizations, in the U.S. alone. Some studies of NSAID-related illness and death specifically look at only non-aspirin drugs.

The cyclooxygenase explanation does NOT explain well how aspirin has MANY benefits not shared by the other "NSAID's". It was convenient to categorize aspirin and then "replace" it with newer, higher-priced medications at the time.

The research hypothesis about aspirin as a major factor in 1918 flu scourge is an interesting but only a hypothesis.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/13/health/13aspirin.html?_r=0
The hypothesis does not match some accounts from survivors of the 1918 epidemic, who watched other family members succumb.
 

aguilaroja

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...The stifling of healing compounds doesn't seem to be make sense. What does that even mean ? ...

The "stifling" that Ellis mentions appears to be his term for consequences of reducing prostaglandin E2.

The assertion that aspirin depletes folic acid, iron, potassium, sodium and vitamin C is repeated at many websites, usually without original reference. Tracing this back, the reference that came up was:

Pelton R, LaValle JB, Hawkins EB. Drug-Induced Nutrient Depletion Handbook. 2nd ed. Lexi-Comp Inc; 2001: 40

I have not seen this reference yet. Of course, in situations of iron excess, reducing iron is a good thing and not easily accomplished except through blood loss or restricting intake.
 

jaguar43

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The "stifling" that Ellis mentions appears to be his term for consequences of reducing prostaglandin E2.

The assertion that aspirin depletes folic acid, iron, potassium, sodium and vitamin C is repeated at many websites, usually without original reference. Tracing this back, the reference that came up was:

Pelton R, LaValle JB, Hawkins EB. Drug-Induced Nutrient Depletion Handbook. 2nd ed. Lexi-Comp Inc; 2001: 40

I have not seen this reference yet. Of course, in situations of iron excess, reducing iron is a good thing and not easily accomplished except through blood loss or restricting intake.

I appreciate the source look up. I think Ray Peat seems to believe that the prostaglandins are inflammatory. I don't know if they have any healing effects though.

Since aspirin increases the metabolic rate it's possible that it increases the need for certain vitamins and minerals.
 

whit

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I appreciate the source look up. I think Ray Peat seems to believe that the prostaglandins are inflammatory. I don't know if they have any healing effects though.

Since aspirin increases the metabolic rate it's possible that it increases the need for certain vitamins and minerals.

I believe your onto something here. I've noticed in my own experience that a craving for certain foods increases when asprin is in the picture.
It's likely the increased use of not the depletion of said substances that's the issue.
I've also noticed there is an optimum dose for most everyone and it varies greatly.
 
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wiggles92

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I believe your onto something here. I've noticed in my own experience that a craving for certain foods increases when asprin is in the picture.
It's likely the increased use of not the depletion of said substances that's the issue.
I've also noticed there is an optimum dose for most everyone and it varies greatly.

I've noticed that too, that some seem to find 2g of aspirin daily really helpful, and there's others who take 300mg 3 times a week and feel like it's messing them up. I'm not here to discount the obvious healing potential of aspirin. This forum has some incredible members, and there's likely no better community to get to the bottom of why aspirin seems to act this way. For me, aspirin is not problematic, but something in my gut tells me to reject it as a supplement.
 

whit

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I don't personally don't have an issue with asprin and have appreciated it's effects when needed even in higher doses. I also know some very elderly folks who swear by its benefits. That being said there may also be issues with additives that make some people already in a delicate state falter somewhat.
 

Guyfranke

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So what's the purported 'healing effect' of this synthetic substance called aspirin ?
Blocking a normal enzyme cascade in the human body is not healing. The body is doing the cascade for a reason. Why block it ?. Is there a new 'aspirin deficiency' out there with humans ? THen are we needing to get 'sufficiency ' of this synthetic now? ?

I understand the palliative care side of this OTC drug ie. pain reduction reasons whether acute or chronic and maybe for short term use as thinner but as a 'supplement' and long term use and the body's innate healing response ? What are the long term use side effects for this synthetic enzyme inhibitor ?
Is this just another way for people to continue with damaging foods and lifestyles habits and not have to feel the after-effects much like taking an anti-hypertensive ? Willthe cells develop a tolerance and require higher and higher dosage over time ?
Inflammation is stage one of the healing response so wouldn't this synthetic be a way of pushing the problem deeper into the body ? into another system that then would require a higher power substance or dosage of the synthetic ?
 
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HDD

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So what's the purported 'healing effect' of this synthetic substance called aspirin ?
Blocking a normal enzyme cascade in the human body is not healing. The body is doing the cascade for a reason. Why block it ?.
..I understand pain reduction reasons whether acute or chronic and maybe for short term use as thinner but as a 'supplement' and long term use and the body's innate healing response ? What are the long term use side effects for this synthetic enzyme inhibitor ?

Ray Peat, PhD on Aspirin – Functional Performance Systems (FPS)
 

scarlettsmum

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This is just a one off anecdotal evidence, but i would like to add that my great grandmother who is 101 years old takes aspirin 250 mg nearly daily now for her morning headache as well as 3-5 coffees every day with 5 tsp of sugar in each coffee and she is in good health and has all wits about her. Her daughter (my grandmother) is 20 years younger and lives with her, takes paracetamol and 1 daily coffee without sugar and is plagued with all sorts of health problems. I know all this means nothing but it makes one wonder...
 

Guyfranke

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This is just a one off anecdotal evidence, but i would like to add that my great grandmother who is 101 years old takes aspirin 250 mg nearly daily now for her morning headache as well as 3-5 coffees every day with 5 tsp of sugar in each coffee and she is in good health and has all wits about her. Her daughter (my grandmother) is 20 years younger and lives with her, takes paracetamol and 1 daily coffee without sugar and is plagued with all sorts of health problems. I know all this means nothing but it makes one wonder...
She has done this all her life or only of recent? the aspirin thing that is.
 

scarlettsmum

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She has done this all her life or only of recent? the aspirin thing that is.
She said that she always took it for any aches and pains even minor ones, certainly every week, but she doesn't remember when she started, she thinks that she always has. When I pushed her to try and remember she looked at me puzzled why I am so interested and sort of dismissed it. :) She clearly didn't think it was important to remember. As I mentioned in the previous post she now takes it almost every day, she takes no vitamins such as K2, etc.
 
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Many very old people take consistent aspirin. The younger generations were indoctrinated with how harmful it is. But the baby aspirin (ironic name as babies are not supposed to take it I think) saved aspirin as many millions take it to protect against heart disease.
 

Guyfranke

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She said that she always took it for any aches and pains even minor ones, certainly every week, but she doesn't remember when she started, she thinks that she always has. When I pushed her to try and remember she looked at me puzzled why I am so interested and sort of dismissed it. :) She clearly didn't think it was important to remember. As I mentioned in the previous post she now takes it almost every day, she takes no vitamins such as K2, etc.
Thanks !
 

blob69

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One can always try a salicylic acid product (like Ellison's Relief FX) instead of aspirin. I just wonder if there's really such a profound difference between the two as claimed by him.
 
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