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Aspirin and Health

Aspirin is a synthetic chemical compound that is technically known as acetylsalicylic acid. Aspirin was originally synthesized by the German chemist Felix Hoffman, whose father used to take salicylic acid for his rheumatism. Aspirin is commonly used for fever, mild to moderate pain and inflammation. Its analgesic properties have more efficacy than codeine. However, aspirin can cause gastrointestinal bleeding which may lead to gastric ulcers. Today’s aspirin eliminate this problem because of an enteric coating which keeps the aspirin from dissolving until it hits the intestine. Yet research reveals that other possible beneficial affects on health may be attributable to a varying degree to aspirin. Aspirin suffered a backlash of popularity for a period of time because of findings that is was responsible for Reye’s syndrome, a rare and deadly condition that attacks children with chicken pox or the flu. Doctor’s immediately began recommending other substitutes for aspirin in young patients to avoid these atypical complications of aspirin therapy. “Take two aspirin and call me in the morning,” however, is fast again becoming the catch-phrase of physicians bolstered by encouraging new research that touts not only aspirin’s ability to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke, but also its effectiveness as an anti-cancer agent, “The wonder drug has made a remarkable comeback. In recent years it has been shown to be a powerful inhibitor of heart attacks and strokes—a virtue neither acetaminophen nor ibuprofen can match. And last week came preliminary evidence of another major benefit: aspirin reduces the risk of death from colon cancer. A major study by the American Cancer Society found that people who took 16 aspirin tablets or more each month cut their risk of dying from colon cancer as much as 50%. It is a very strong and consistent finding” (Lemonick 1).

Aspirin is the most common non-steroidal anti-in...

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Aspirin and Health. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 17:25, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1685070.html