Aspirin has well known uses for fever, pain and arthritis. What you may not know is that for a medication that costs pennies a day aspirin given at the onset of chest pain has one of the greatest impacts on reduction of death from heart attack than any other intervention. If that's not impressive enough, in a patient suspected of having an acute stroke a 325 mg aspirin given within 48 hours can improve the outcome.
Who should be taking an aspirin a day and what are the real benefits? For two of the top causes of death in the United States, stroke and heart disease, aspirin plays an important role in prevention but carries some risks of bleeding.
Should healthy people take an aspirin a day? The answer is not necessarily. Men and women with 2 cardiac risk factors or more (male sex, family history of early heart disease, high blood pressure, type II Diabetes and smoking) should consider a daily 81 mg aspirin to significantly reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. For people with a history of heart attack, stroke or mini-stroke (TIA) the reduction in risk of death and future events is even more impressive.
Is aspirin only good for prevention of cardiovascular disease? There is a compelling body of evidence for aspirin decreasing the risk of colon cancer but it requires taking high doses for long periods of time (10-20 years) to see any benefit. Overall, the harms outweigh the benefits of aspirin for prevention of colon cancer so it's not recommended in adults at average risk (including those with family history) and no symptoms.
What is the story with aspirin and miscarriage? There is a roll for aspirin use for some complications encountered during pregnancy. In pregnant women with the anti-phospholipid antibody syndrome low dose aspirin has been associated with successful pregnancy outcomes in some studies. There is also an unlabeled use for pre-eclampsia prevention with 60-80 mg a day during gestational weeks 13-26 for women at high risk
It is true that aspirin is good for the skin? Topical preparations of aspirin (salicylic acid) are effective in the treatment of acne, dandruff, warts, psoriasis and eczema, among other things. It works by loosening up dry skin making it easier to remove so other preparations are more effective.
There are many other touted uses for aspirin including removing stains, getting the green out of swimmers hair and easing bug bites, but there isn't much evidence that it works any better than other standard therapies. Ok ok, so it might not work for everything!