Aspirin May Delay Alzheimer's Disease

Aspirin reduces pain and may prevent heart attacks and strokes. This drug may ward off certain caincers. Now researchers have discovered that it may even delay or prevent Alzheimer’s disease when used in a low dosage, according to a new study published in BMJ Open

[link: http://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/2/5/e001288.long ].

The study adds to earlier research suggesting that
"The BMJ researchers tracked the brain health of 681 Swedish women ages 70 to 92. At the start of study, none of the women suffered from dementia, but 95 percent were at high risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD). All of the women were given a battery of memory and cognitive tests known as the mini-mental state exam.

"When the exam was repeated five years later, scores fell, on average. However, women who had consistently taken low-dose aspirin during the study actually increased their scores, compared to never-users. The study didn’t find any brain benefit in women who regularly took other non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen or naproxen."

• Taking a baby aspirin daily may cut the risk for Alzheimer’s by up to 55 percent.

• aspirin has a unique benefit not provided by other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs): It thins the blood, lowering the likelihood of a clot that can trigger a heart attack or ischemic stroke (a category of stroke which is caused by blood clots and is the most frquent type of stroke.

• Those little aspirin pills fight against chronic inflammation, a factor in triggering heart attacks.

• Heart attacks and ischemic strokes are caused by the same problem, plaque inside the artery walls which bursts. This can lead to a clot which blocks the flow of blood.

• Strokes interfere with memory, speech and movement—and rank as the leading cause of disability. But people who have never experienced stroke symptoms can also suffer from memory problems, even tiny clots that result in no apparent symptom can result in progressive impairment such as memory loss.

• A Harvard study showed that that so-called "silent strokes," which occur without any symptoms, are also related to cognitive decline. These small strokes can lead to a memory-impaired condition called vascular dementia.

• There are also several lifestyle choices which reduce the possibility of a brain disease such as dementia, including regular exercise, improving your diet, shunning tobacco and secondhand smoke, and maintaining an active social life.

Some doctors recommend low-dose daily aspirin for any patients with vascular risk factors. Patients should consult with a doctor before beginning an aspirin regimen, since the drug can induce gastrointestinal bleeding. [There is also a very rare disease for which those who have it should never take aspirin].

Summarized from:

http://health.yahoo.net/experts/dayinhealth/aspirin-may-reduce-cognitive-decline