In a lengthy interview about his health with The Wall Street Journal<\/a>, Trump, 79, said he is in \u201cperfect health\u201d, partly putting it down to his use of aspirin<\/a>.<\/p>\n Aspirin can be used in a preventive manner like this \u2013 but it is generally taken as a lower dose, sometimes called a \u201cbaby aspirin\u201d.<\/p>\n Trump\u2019s high dose risks doing more harm than good, by causing stomach ulcers and brain bleeds, experts have warned.<\/p>\n So, how do the risks and benefits of daily aspirin stack up \u2013 and how could Trump\u2019s unorthodox regime be affecting his health?<\/p>\n Aspirin might usually be thought of as a pain killer and anti-inflammatory medicine, but also helps prevent heart attacks and strokes.<\/p>\n It does this by reducing blood clotting, as most heart attacks and strokes are caused by a blood clot blocking a blood vessel to either the heart or the brain. The anti-clotting effect was discovered in the 1950s, partly because of prolonged bleeding in people using aspirin chewing gum after getting their tonsils out.<\/p>\n In the 1980s, daily aspirin was commonly taken by older people to cut their risks of heart attacks, at a dose of 325mg or one standard tablet \u2013 the same dose that Trump said he uses in the Journal interview. The dose for pain relief is usually one or two of the standard tablets.<\/p>\n Re-evaluating aspirin benefits<\/p>\n In the past few decades, doctors have become more cautious about preventive aspirin. In the 1990s, trials showed that a lower dose of about 80mg gave the same cut in heart attacks and strokes with less bleeding.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we\u2019re using a drug for prevention, we want to use the minimum dose that gives the benefit without increasing the side effects,\u201d said Professor Beverley Hunt, head of the charity Thrombosis UK.<\/p>\n The risks from aspirin are not minor. 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 anaemia and fatigue in older people.<\/p>\n Aspirin may also lead to bleeds in the brain if someone bangs their head. \u201cIf you\u2019re on aspirin and you hit your head and you have an intracranial bleed, it will be bigger on aspirin,\u201d said Professor Hunt.<\/p>\n People on aspirin are also more prone to bruises, which happen if a knock causes minor bleeding under the skin.<\/p>\n Trump has been seen with bruises on his hands, which he said in the interview was caused by taking aspirin. His solution is to put make-up on the bruises, he said.<\/p>\n The President\u2019s aides said there had been several incidents where he had cut his hands, including once when Pam Bondi, now his attorney general, nicked him with her ring when doing a high five, the newspaper reported.<\/p>\n Despite the the change in medical practise, Trump said in the interview he prefers to stay on the high dose because that is what he has been taking for 25 years. \u201cI\u2019m a little superstitious. They say aspirin is good for thinning out the blood, and I don\u2019t want thick blood pouring through my heart,\u201d Trump said. \u201cI want nice, thin blood pouring through my heart.\u201d<\/p>\n Another controversial aspect of the treatment is whether or not the President should be taking aspirin at all. In the UK, doctors generally recommend it only for people who have already had a heart attack or stroke, because they are at high risk of having a further one.<\/p>\n In people who have never had a heart attack or stroke and don\u2019t have any other heart conditions, aspirin use was recommended against by the medical guidelines body, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, in 2009. \u201cWe are sort of moving away from it,\u201d said Professor Hunt.<\/p>\n In America, guidelines recommend against starting preventive aspirin for people who haven\u2019t had a heart attack or stroke who are 60 or over, because older people have a higher bleeding risk.<\/p>\n \t\tYour next read<\/p>\n![\"Donald](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SEI_279438189.jpg\")
Trump\u2019s hands have been bruised at times, leading to speculation about his health (Photo: Bloomberg\/Getty)<\/p>\n![\"Blood](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SEI_279438303.jpg\")
Aspirin works by blocking blood clot formation (Photo: Artur Plawgo\/Science Photo Library\/Getty)<\/p>\n
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