Aspirin Side Effects
and the 1918 Flu

The study, appearing in the November 1, 2009 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, shows that there may have been a correlation between the high use of (newly discovered) aspirin and the huge spike of swine flu deaths in the fall of 1918.

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As you may recall, there was a wave of mild swine flu infections in the spring of 1918. In the fall, there was a spike of cases again—this time they were more severe.

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Scientists have speculated on the reasons for this. Many believe that the 1918 epidemic Spanish Flu virus mutated and returned in the fall, in a much more virulent form.

However, others have suggested that there were other reasons, including aspirin side effects, for the increased number of deaths in the fall.

• Vitamin D Deficiency - Noting that there were more deaths in areas where the weather was colder, some believe that the increased number of deaths occurred in the winter—when more people stayed inside and did not receive the benefit of sunshine's vitamin D.

• Genetic Mutation - This is the argument given by the WHO (World Health Organization) when they declared a worldwide pandemic in June 2009. Dr. Margaret Chan expressed concern, at that time, that the (currently mild) swine flu H1N1 virus would “return in the fall with a vengeance.” She was referring to what we had seen with the 1918 epidemic flu and suggesting that we would be facing the same scenario in 2009.

• Improper Treatment - Homeopathic physicians in 1918 have documented success with their patients who got the flu. Many homeopathic doctors lived to tell about the pandemic 1918 flu and they were able to document that their patients survived!

  Many mentioned that this was true only if the patients did NOT take aspirin! Homeopathic physicians in 1918 were ahead of their time, being leary of the possibility of aspirin side effects.

• Deaths Due to Other Causes - There is much speculation that the huge number of deaths in 1918 were not actually caused by the H1N1 virus itself. If you go to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) website, you will see that, every year about 1000-2000 people die in the U.S. of influenza and related complications.

  In other words, pneumonia, MRSA, and bacterial infections are all lumped in with influenza—if they occur during or after a flu virus infection. Most older people who die from the seasonal flu, actually die from pneumonia.

  Many scientists believe that most of the deaths in 1918 occurred because of secondary bacterial infections. People were weakened by the flu virus, then got another bacterial infection and died. And, in 1918, antibiotics had not yet been discovered.

• Aspirin - The history of aspirin tells us that aspirin was relatively new to the scene in 1918. Doctors unknowingly used high levels of aspirin with their patients, hoping that the new miracle drug would help.

  Its use was promoted by the drug industry, and endorsed by doctors desperately wanting to “do something.”. Doctors were unaware of aspirin side effects. Patients were desperate for hope and had faith in their family doctors.

  Interestingly, in 1918, the US Surgeon General, the US Navy, and the Journal of the American Medical Association were recommending the use of aspirin just before the October death spike.

Today we know that high levels of aspirin can cause aspirin side effects like build up of fluid in the lungs and possibly hemmorhaging. In addition, aspirin can impair the body's ability to clear itself of mucous. And for children, we have the added concern that aspirin use can lead to Reyes Syndrome.

Knowing the side effects of aspirin today can help us make better decisions about treatment for diseases like swine flu, going forward.

If you have a question that you would like to ask a doctor, you can get a LIVE and personal answer to your question at doctors online advice.

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