Trump's high doses of aspirin could lead to 'stomach ulcers and brain bleeds': experts

Medical specialists warn President Donald Trump is risking "stomach ulcers and brain bleeds" with his unprescribed regimen of daily aspirin, reports the iPaper.

Trump told The Wall Street Journal that he takes a higher than recommended daily dose of aspirin because he wants “thin blood” to protect his heart.

“They say aspirin is good for thinning out the blood, and I don’t want thick blood pouring through my heart,” said Trump. “I want nice, thin blood pouring through my heart.”

But while aspirin can be used in a preventive manner, it is generally taken at a lower dose — and even then, only if the patient has already suffered heart-related injury such as stroke.

“If we’re using a drug for prevention, we want to use the minimum dose that gives the benefit without increasing the side effects,” said Professor Beverley Hunt, head of the charity Thrombosis UK.

“The risks from aspirin are not minor,” reports the iPaper. “In the stomach, aspirin irritates the lining, leading to stomach ulcers. It can also cause minor bleeds elsewhere in the gut, which can lead to anemia and fatigue in older people.”

In addition, aspirin can cause bleeding in the brain if the victim whacks their head, with Hunt saying “if you’re on aspirin and you hit your head and you have an intracranial bleed, it will be bigger on aspirin.”

People on aspirin are also more prone to bruises, as suggested by the unrelenting bruise on Trump’s hand, which he admits is caused by taking aspirin.

Another controversial aspect of the treatment is whether Trump should be taking it at all, say experts. Doctors in the UK and the U.S. know the risk and generally recommend it only for people who have already had a heart attack or stroke, particularly elderly people like the president. Hunt says the nation is “sort of moving away from it.”

In the U.S., guidelines even recommend against starting preventive aspirin for people who are 60 or over because of the high bleeding risk it presents to older people.

But, of course, Trump is the same president who in 2020 claimed to be taking hydroxychloroquine to prevent Covid despite the lack of evidence showing it worked. Years later, trials confirmed that it did not in fact do anything for the Covid-19 virus.

Read the full iPaper report at this link.