On Sat, 20 Feb 1999, Susan Carmack wrote:

>> I'd also be drinking plenty of water (to move your stool; plus it is a
>> good source of trace minerals) and taking children's aspirin every day.

> What?! I don't think this is paleo. I see that alot of children's
> aspirin and tylenol is cut with aspartame and dubious flavourings and
> colourings. Aspirin is known to have had a detrimental affect on those
> involved in the 1918 flu epidemic. ie: those who took aspirin died and
> those who didn't, lived.  Actually, aspirin causes, not prevents heart
> attacks and also blindness has  occurred in the elderly. Beware of
> Bayer!

The misinformation that gets passed onto this list is, at times, mind-
boggling.

For starters, it's not too far of a stretch to consider aspirin as
"paleo."   Acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin) is a synthesized version of
salicylic acid, which in turn is the active ingredient of willow bark.
Native Americans used willow bark for centuries as a pain remedy.

Second, aspirin helps prevent heart attacks by blocking the generation of
thromboxane, a chemical produced by blood platelets.  Platelets accumulate
at sites of vascular injury, such as atherosclerotic plaque, and
contribute to clot formation. When this occurs in the arteries of the
heart, the odds of having a heart attack are greatly increased.

Important references on the significant negative relationship between
aspirin consumption and heart disease include:

* Fuster V, Dyken ML, Vokonas PS, Hennekens C. Aspirin as a therapeutic
   agent in cardiovascular disease. Circulation. 1993;87:659-675.

* ISIS-2 (Second International Study of Infarct Survival)
Collaborative Group.  Randomised trial of intravenous streptokinase, oral
aspirin, both, or neither  among 17,187 cases of suspected acute
myocardial infarction: ISIS-2. Lancet. 1988;2:349-360.

* Rogers WJ, Bowlby LJ, Chandra NC, French WJ, Gore JM, Lambrew
CT, Rubison RM, Tiefenbrunn HJ, Weaver WD. Treatment of myocardial
infarction in the United States (1990 to 1993): observations from the
National Registry of  Myocardial Infarction. Circulation.
1994;90:2103-2114.

* Hennekens CH, Jonas MA, Buring JE. The benefits of aspirin in
acute myocardial infarction: still a well-kept secret in the US. Arch
Intern Med. 1994;154:37-39.

Third, aspirin appears to inhibit colon cancer by reducing the level of
prostaglandins in the colon. Prostaglandins--which are known to mediate
pain and inflammation--may also be mediators of tumor growth and
development. To examine aspirin's effects on colon cancer, epidemiologists
analyzed the records of 662,424 white men and women.  They found that the
risk of fatal colon cancer among persons using aspirin 16 or more times
per month was approximately half that of non-users, and the trend of
decreasing risk with increasing dose was statistically significant in both
men and women.  Indeed, the same research group found that aspirin
signficantly reduced the odds of fatal cancers of the esophagus, stomach,
and rectum as well as the colon. In this follow-up study, death rates from
all four digestive tract cancers were approximately 40% lower among men
and women who used aspirin 16 times per month or more for at least one
year compared to those who used no aspirin. The trend of decreasing risk
with more frequent aspirin use was strongest among persons who had used
aspirin for 10 years or more (death rates from other cancers were not
associated with aspirin use).

See:

* Thun M, Namboordiri M, Heath C. Aspirin use and reduced risk of
    fatal colon cancer. N Engl JMed 325:1593-1596, 1991.

* Thun M, Namboordiri M, Calle EE, Flanders WD, Heath CW. Aspirin
    use and risk of fatal cancer. Cancer Res 53:1322-1327, 1993.

Aspirin does have some downsides.  It can increase bleeding and bruising,
and it can irritate the stomach lining.  It also poses problems for
people with liver or kidney disease, peptic ulcers, and other
gastrointestinal disease or bleeding.  To mimimize its downsides for
normal/healthy individuals, many health practioners recommend
80-milligram  enteric coated aspirin, which keeps it from
dissolving until after passing out of the stomach.  Indeed, this is
what Andrew Weil recommends (twice a day) . . . Weil also finds recent
research revealing the beneficial effects of mega-dosing (two 325mg
aspirin) a couple of times a month convincing (to counteract the adaptive
response platelets make to the 80mg dosage).

I don't work for Bayer or any other drug company!  ;o)

Cheers!

Gregg
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