The advice changed: current guidelines reserve daily low-dose aspirin mainly for heart attack and stroke survivors - for primary prevention (no prior event), the small benefit now loses to the bleeding risk for most adults.
The rules that follow: had a heart attack, stroke, or stent? Do NOT stop without your cardiologist - secondary prevention saves lives. Started it yourself or on old advice? Ask whether the balance still favors you - do not start on your own, especially past 60 or with ulcer or bleeding history. Aspirin is still a fine painkiller and still right for specific high-risk patients - this is about the automatic daily habit. Pymander is a free AI doctor, 24/7 by text, and can help you weigh your situation.
What to do
Common questions
Is baby aspirin still recommended daily?
The advice genuinely changed, and a lot of people missed the memo. For decades, a daily low-dose (baby) aspirin was standard middle-aged health maintenance. Current guidelines, summarized by NIH MedlinePlus: daily aspirin is now recommended mainly for people who have already had a heart attack or stroke - for them, the clot-preventing benefit clearly outweighs the bleeding risk. For everyone else - primary prevention, meaning you have not had an event - the math flipped: as statins and blood pressure control improved, aspirin's small absolute benefit shrank while its bleeding risk (stomach and brain bleeds, rising with age) stayed put. The practical rules that follow: if you had a heart attack, stroke, or stent, do not stop your daily aspirin without your cardiologist - stopping secondary prevention is dangerous. If you started daily aspirin on your own for prevention, or years ago on old advice, do not simply keep swallowing - ask your doctor whether the balance still favors it for you; do not start it on your own either, especially past 60 or with any ulcer or bleeding history. Aspirin remains useful for pain and specific high-risk situations - this is about the automatic daily habit, not the drug. Pymander is a free AI doctor, 24/7 by text, that can help you weigh your situation.