Aspirin is not a good idea for women trying to stave off heart attacks or strokes. Fifty women would have to take ASA for 10 years to help just one person, and this would only be for women at risk for a heart attack. For a person who has already had a heart attack or stroke, the evidence shows there is some benefit to taking aspirin, but it is not that impressive; perhaps the value is between 10 and 25%. Keep in mind data shows that the risk for a second heart attack drops from 8.2% to 6.8%; this confers a mere 1.4% benefit, which sounds a lot less impressive than a 25% reduction in the risk for another heart attack.
Other platelet inhibitors should be studied in comparative trials. ASA, ginkgo, fish oil and several other herbs should be tested against one another in the same clinical trial. Other anticoagulants such as nattokinase and lumbrokinase should also be tested. Live blood cell analysis is a good way to monitor the benefits of these chemicals in lowering platelet and red cell aggregation.
