{"id":222527,"date":"2026-01-02T00:21:08","date_gmt":"2026-01-02T00:21:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/222527\/"},"modified":"2026-01-02T00:21:08","modified_gmt":"2026-01-02T00:21:08","slug":"trump-tells-wsj-he-takes-a-higher-daily-dose-of-aspirin-than-his-doctors-advise-in-lengthy-interview-on-his-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/222527\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump tells WSJ he takes a higher daily dose of aspirin than his doctors advise in lengthy interview on his health"},"content":{"rendered":"

President Donald Trump<\/a> told The Wall Street Journal in an interview published Thursday that he takes a higher dose of aspirin than his doctors have recommended, blaming that for the visible hand bruises that have generated renewed questions about his health<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey say aspirin is good for thinning out the blood, and I don\u2019t want thick blood pouring through my heart,\u201d Trump, 79, said of why he takes a larger dose. \u201cI want nice, thin blood pouring through my heart. Does that make sense?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019d rather have me take the smaller one,\u201d Trump added. \u201cI take the larger one, but I\u2019ve done it for years, and what it does do is it causes bruising.\u201d<\/p>\n

The interview appeared to be one of the most extensive conservations Trump has had with journalists on his health, as scrutiny has intensified this year over his age, fitness for office and whether he\u2019s being sufficiently transparent with his medical information. Trump has long had bruising on his right hand, which CNN has reported predated his return to the White House. But it drew more attention after he began trying to cover it with heavy makeup and bandages and shield it from cameras with his other hand. Observers have also raised concerns about swelling in his legs and his appearing to doze<\/a> during public events.<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s physician, Dr. Sean Barbabella, told the Journal that the president takes 325 milligrams of aspirin daily. According to Mayo Clinic, a low dose of aspirin, which \u201ccan help prevent heart attack or stroke,\u201d ranges from 75 to 100 milligrams and 81 milligrams is commonly recommended. The Mayo Clinic also says that for aspirin therapy, the daily dose \u201cis usually between\u201d 75 to 325 milligrams.<\/p>\n

Aspirin helps thin the blood, which can prevent clots from forming, but it also comes with the risk of excessive bleeding. In recent years, medical guidelines stopped recommending daily aspirin for many adults because the risks outweigh the benefits, and some suggest halting aspirin therapy entirely when patients are in their 70s.<\/p>\n

Dr. Jonathan Reiner, a professor at George Washington University\u2019s School of Medicine and Health Sciences who was a longtime cardiologist for former Vice President Dick Cheney, said the latest updates from Trump and his team raise more questions than they answer.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s uncommon to see that kind of bruising with one aspirin a day,\u201d Reiner said. \u201cMy question is, \u2018Does the president take any medications that have not been disclosed by the White House?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Barbabella said Thursday that Trump \u201cremains in exceptional health.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cPresident Trump\u2019s medical evaluations and laboratory results continue to show excellent metabolic health, and have revealed his cardiovascular health puts him 14 years younger than his age. Overall, the President remains in exceptional health and perfectly suited to execute his duties as Commander in Chief,\u201d he said in a statement to CNN.<\/p>\n

Across a series of events last week, Trump \u2014 who last year became the oldest president to take the oath of office \u2014 appeared with discoloration or light bruising on the back of his left hand, in addition to the more persistent bruise on his right hand<\/a> that has been visible for months.<\/p>\n

The White House has previously explained that the bruising on his right hand is due to constant handshaking along with a regular regimen of aspirin that can make such discoloration more common.<\/p>\n

Reiner said 325 milligrams of aspirin each day is not a very high dose, but there\u2019s no medical reason to take that much on a daily basis. When someone sprains an ankle, he said, they might get a 325 milligrams of aspirin every four hours, which would be considered a high dose.<\/p>\n

\u201cAspirin has been studied in varied doses, and the reason why 81 milligrams is given to people is that\u2019s the dose which appears to have the best combination of protection from clotting events and bleeding caused by the drug,\u201d Reiner said. \u201cIn other words, 325 milligrams increases the bleeding risk but doesn\u2019t increase the efficacy. So we never use that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe big issue here is transparency. All of these issues just highlight how opaque The White House has been about the president\u2019s health,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

In the interview, Trump also discussed a scan he underwent in October, which he previously described to reporters as an MRI. At the time, the president gave little detail around the procedure or what physicians were seeking to explore, telling reporters they should ask his doctors.<\/p>\n

When asked about the scan by the Journal, Trump said it wasn\u2019t an MRI but rather a CT scan. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t an MRI,\u201d Trump said. \u201cIt was less than that. It was a scan.\u201d<\/p>\n

Barbabella said Thursday the CT scan was done \u201cto definitively rule out any cardiovascular issues.\u201d Last month, Barbabella released a memo<\/a> saying the October medical imaging was of Trump\u2019s cardiovascular and abdominal systems and that both showed \u201cperfectly normal\u201d results. In 2018, Trump had a coronary CT scan<\/a> that did show some abnormalities \u2014 a steady build-up of plaque in his blood vessels, indicating moderate heart disease.<\/p>\n

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the administration\u2019s transparency about testing Trump\u2019s received, saying in a Thursday statement, \u201cThe President\u2019s physicians and the White House have always maintained the President received advanced imaging.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAdditional details on the imaging have been disclosed by the President himself, because he continues to be the most transparent and open president in history and has nothing to hide,\u201d she added, while criticizing Trump\u2019s predecessor Joe Biden.<\/p>\n

Trump also addressed steps he has taken to treat other conditions, including swelling in his lower legs that the White House announced in July was due to chronic venous insufficiency<\/a> \u2014 a common condition frequently found in older people.<\/p>\n

Trump told the Journal he tried compression socks but \u201cdidn\u2019t like them.\u201d He also suggested he was not interested in taking up regular exercise.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just don\u2019t like it. It\u2019s boring,\u201d Trump said. \u201cTo walk on a treadmill or run on a treadmill for hours and hours like some people do, that\u2019s not for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Journal also asked the president about his appearing to doze off at recent public events and about his hearing. Trump defended himself on both scores.<\/p>\n

During a Cabinet meeting last month<\/a>, Trump closed his eyes for several seconds at a time. Similarly, during a November 6 event in the Oval Office, the president appeared to close his eyes or struggle to keep them open<\/a>. But Trump told the Journal he didn\u2019t actually fall asleep.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll just close. It\u2019s very relaxing to me,\u201d he said of his eyes being shut. \u201cSometimes they\u2019ll take a picture of me blinking, blinking, and they\u2019ll catch me with the blink.\u201d<\/p>\n

Of his hearing, Trump said he only struggled \u201cwhen there\u2019s a lot of people talking,\u201d but otherwise downplayed any concerns.<\/p>\n

Before and after his election, Trump questioned his predecessor\u2019s fitness to serve, even alleging Biden was unaware of actions signed in his name using the autopen, which Biden denies. Biden dropped out of the 2024 race following a disastrous debate performance that further fueled concerns and criticism over his health and ability to serve.<\/p>\n

This story has been updated with additional information. <\/p>\n

CNN\u2019s Alayna Treene, Adam Cancryn and Aaron Blake contributed to this report.<\/p>\n

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"President Donald Trump told The Wall Street Journal in an interview published Thursday that he takes a higher…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":222528,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[114931,6776,969,103,61,60,114930,371,114932,8671,3591],"class_list":{"0":"post-222527","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-medication","8":"tag-aspirin-therapy","9":"tag-cardiovascular-health","10":"tag-donald-trump","11":"tag-health","12":"tag-ie","13":"tag-ireland","14":"tag-jonathan-reiner","15":"tag-medication","16":"tag-sean-barbabella","17":"tag-the-wall-street-journal","18":"tag-white-house"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222527","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=222527"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/222527\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/222528"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=222527"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=222527"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=222527"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}