Saturday, January 22, 2011

An Aspirin a Day for Diabetics?

Aspirin isn't just headache medicine anymore. The drug can also help prevent heart and stroke, as reported in recent years. According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), some diabetics can benefit from daily aspirin therapy.

Current ADA guidelines recommend aspirin for those diabetics with a history of heart attack, stroke, bypass surgery, angina, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or kidney disease. In addition, some obese diabetics, smokers and those with a family history of heart disease may be advised to take aspirin every day.

Low-dose aspirin therapy is advised for women over 60 and men over 50 with diabetes who have other risk factors for heart attack and stroke, says recent research published in the journal Diabetes Care.

The average recommended dosage for diabetics is between 75-162 milligrams of aspirin daily.

However, those diabetics with liver disease or who are already taking blood thinners such as Coumadin or warfarin are advised to avoid aspirin.

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