# Low Dose/Baby Aspirin ? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 9, 2020, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158 "2020-01-09T02:37:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SanDiegoTim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@SanDiegoTim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanDiegoTim)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/1 "2020-01-09T02:37:12Z")
How did it come to be this product is 81 mg? Why not 80? 82? 100? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/2 "2020-01-09T02:40:12Z")
A regular dose is 325 mg. 81 is the closest to 1/4 of that. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/3 "2020-01-09T02:46:51Z")
And the 81 mg aspirin is more expensive (per pill) than the 325 mg aspirin, which I find odd. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/4 "2020-01-09T04:20:52Z")
[https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=368027&highlight=grains](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=368027&highlight=grains) zombievoice/Grains/zv ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 9:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/5 "2020-01-09T09:26:16Z")
Shopping tip: Get your doctor to write you a prescription for baby aspirin. My insurance covers it with no deductible or co-payment when dispensed in a 90-day supply by the pharmacist. Yes, I know that you can buy it off-the-shelf with no prescription. But I get it free if I have a prescription. Your insurance coverage may vary. ---
**Author:** ![Steven\_G](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steven_g/32/5080_2.png) [@Steven\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steven_G)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/6 "2020-01-09T09:54:03Z")
Baby Aspirin? As in acetylsalicylic acid intended for use by infants? Is this still for sale in the USA? The Reye Syndrome reports in the late 90’s led to changes in labelling and use recommendations. While I don’t think it is actually banned in the EU, I doubt any pharmacy still sells it and no doctor would prescribe it. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 10:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/7 "2020-01-09T10:08:31Z")
> [@Steven\_G](#): > > Baby Aspirin? As in acetylsalicylic acid intended for use by infants? Is this still for sale in the USA? > > The Reye Syndrome reports in the late 90’s led to changes in labelling and use recommendations. > > While I don’t think it is actually banned in the EU, I doubt any pharmacy still sells it and no doctor would prescribe it. it’s not labeled as such. it’s usually marked either “low dose” or “aspirin regimen.” ---
**Author:** ![kferr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/71e660/32.png) [@kferr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kferr)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/8 "2020-01-09T10:48:09Z")
I’ve been taking low dose aspirin for years. Here in the UK the stuff I get is labelled “Dispersible Asprin tablets 75g”. You’re meant to disolve it in water and drink it, but I just swallow it. In the UK unless you are over 65 or on benefits you pay a flat rate per prescription item, currently £9.00. The asprin is about £1.20 over the counter so I dropped it from my regular prescription list. ---
**Author:** ![FinsToTheLeft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finstotheleft/32/2930_2.png) [@FinsToTheLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinsToTheLeft)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/9 "2020-01-09T11:37:30Z")
I think I pay about $10 for a 1 year supply at Costco, which is less than my dispensing fee for a 90 supply if my doctor wrote me a prescription. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/10 "2020-01-09T16:02:30Z")
> [@Steven\_G](#): > > Baby Aspirin? As in acetylsalicylic acid intended for use by infants? Is this still for sale in the USA? > > The Reye Syndrome reports in the late 90’s led to changes in labelling and use recommendations. > > While I don’t think it is actually banned in the EU, I doubt any pharmacy still sells it and no doctor would prescribe it. I don’t think anyone has answered your question (which I’ll take at face value) directly. Low dose aspirin is indicated for > [@](#): > > the secondary prevention of thrombotic cerebrovascular or cardiovascular disease and following by-pass surgery. (from [this](https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/4172/smpc) example). It will be available in Europe for this indication or something very similar. It’s not intended to treat pain (etc) in children. “Baby aspirin” is a cutesy US name for it. The aspirin _is_ a baby, not _for_ a baby. j ---
**Author:** ![FinsToTheLeft](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/finstotheleft/32/2930_2.png) [@FinsToTheLeft](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FinsToTheLeft)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/11 "2020-01-09T16:05:45Z")
> [@Treppenwitz](#): > > It will be available in Europe for this indication or something very similar. “Baby aspirin” is a cutesy US name for it. > > j It’s not just a cutesy name. For years Bayer marketed 81mg orange chewable aspirin for children & babies, not because it was a small pill. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/12 "2020-01-09T16:59:15Z")
> [@FinsToTheLeft](#): > > I think I pay about $10 for a 1 year supply at Costco, which is less than my dispensing fee for a 90 supply if my doctor wrote me a prescription. I got put on it a few months ago and could not find it at CostCo nor any of the three pharmacies I checked at. Amazon Prime to the rescue. As a bonus, they were enteric. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/13 "2020-01-09T18:16:13Z")
> [@FinsToTheLeft](#): > > It’s not just a cutesy name. For years Bayer marketed 81mg orange chewable aspirin for children & babies, not because it was a small pill. The one I always remembered was [St. Joseph](https://www.dropbox.com/s/ujacjb0ruz75rwe/stjosephchildrensaspirin.jpg?dl=0). ---
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/14 "2020-01-09T18:36:24Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > I got put on it a few months ago and could not find it at CostCo nor any of the three pharmacies I checked at. Amazon Prime to the rescue. As a bonus, they were enteric. I buy it at CostCo in the Kansas City area. They carry Bayer and their own (Kirkland) brand of 81 mg Aspirin. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/15 "2020-01-09T19:10:41Z")
> [@Alley\_Dweller](#): > > Shopping tip: Get your doctor to write you a prescription for baby aspirin. My insurance covers it with no deductible or co-payment when dispensed in a 90-day supply by the pharmacist. > > Yes, I know that you can buy it off-the-shelf with no prescription. But I get it free if I have a prescription. Your insurance coverage may vary. Yeah, but it’s cheap enough off-the-shelf. I pay about $2.50 for three bottles of 36 tablets each at Wal-Mart. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/16 "2020-01-09T19:17:41Z")
> [@FinsToTheLeft](#): > > It’s not just a cutesy name. For years Bayer marketed 81mg orange chewable aspirin for children & babies, not because it was a small pill. You raise an interesting question - I was repeating what I had always understood to be the case (long term industry veteran, but not in the US) – that the “Baby” refers to the size of the tablet/dose, not the intended patient (hence my use of the term “cutesy”). [Here’s](https://gomerblog.com/2017/09/baby-aspirin/) the same thing from a FDA Commissioner: > [@](#): > > “No, no, it’s not called baby aspirin because it’s meant to be given for babies, newborns, infants, even young children,” an exasperated Gottlieb replied. He attempted to clarify, stating that it’s called baby aspirin because aspirin 81 mg is a “small dose” compared to full-strength aspirin 325 mg. “In a way,” he continued, “what we’re saying is that aspirin 325 mg is like an adult and aspirin 81 mg is like a baby. Get it? Baby aspirin?” But to be honest, I would have thought I should be able to do better, evidence wise, than a blog. Evidence on the origin of the term seems very hard to google. Wiki gives [a quite different explanation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspirin#Dosages): > [@](#): > > The 81-milligram (1 1⁄4-grain) tablets are commonly called “baby aspirin” or “baby-strength”, because they were originally – but no longer – intended to be administered to infants and children - but the cite it gives does not support this assertion. So now I’m intrigued. It could be descriptive of size/dose, it could be a trade name (seems unlikely), or a common figure of speech referring to children’s aspirin. Do you have anything more concrete than I could find? j ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/17 "2020-01-09T19:34:57Z")
The brand I buy (Target store brand) is labeled “Low Dose Aspirin”. (Enteric coated.) Given that it’s not recommended for children, I will be surprised if I hear that _any_ brand in the United States (or anywhere) is still labeled “Baby Aspirin”. (Was it ever?) Does anyone here know of any brand that is or ever was actually labeled “Baby Aspirin”? And if so, is it still so labeled? The generally intended use is as a low-dose blood thinner for on-going regular use, for people who have had strokes or heart attacks, to help prevent future such events. Also sometimes recommended for people without that kind of medical history, but who are considered at “high risk” (e.g., due to high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or history of transient ischemic attacks). ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/18 "2020-01-09T19:41:52Z")
Also: As everyone knows (right?), aspirin has a tendency to cause gastrointestinal bleeding. I have heard it said that this is true even when the aspirin is given intravenously. My doctor tells me that this tendency increases as one gets older, and therefore when a patient reaches a certain age it is not recommended. (He didn’t specify what that age is, but as I am 68, it must be older than that.) ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/19 "2020-01-09T19:54:48Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Does anyone here know of any brand that is or ever was actually labeled “Baby Aspirin”? And if so, is it still so labeled? I’m thinking “baby aspirin” was colloquial. Usually the label was for some variant of [Aspirin for Children or Children’s Aspirin](https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&biw=1413&bih=882&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=g4QXXrSMK5WJ-gTooJ7gAQ&q=children%27s+aspirin+vintage&oq=children%27s+aspirin+vintage&gs_l=img.3...8503.10493..10846...0.0..0.89.640.10......0....1..gws-wiz-img.......0i67j0j0i5i30j0i24j0i30.HXIKlbAtyOU&ved=0ahUKEwj02YrOpffmAhWVhJ4KHWiQBxwQ4dUDCAY&uact=5). ETA: I remember my parents calling it baby aspirin and I loved it like candy. When I was very young I got hold of a bottle, OD’ed on the stuff and( thankfully )vomited it all into the toilet. It’s a very vivid memory. I _still_ like the astringent taste of straight aspirin. I think that makes me a freak along the lines of people who enjoy the scent of gasoline. ---
**Author:** ![TheCuse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thecuse/32/2854_2.png) [@TheCuse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheCuse)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158/20 "2020-01-09T20:00:16Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > The brand I buy (Target store brand) is labeled “Low Dose Aspirin”. (Enteric coated.) > > Given that it’s not recommended for children, I will be surprised if I hear that _any_ brand in the United States (or anywhere) is still labeled “Baby Aspirin”. (Was it ever?) > > Does anyone here know of any brand that is or ever was actually labeled “Baby Aspirin”? And if so, is it still so labeled? > > The generally intended use is as a low-dose blood thinner for on-going regular use, for people who have had strokes or heart attacks, to help prevent future such events. Also sometimes recommended for people without that kind of medical history, but who are considered at “high risk” (e.g., due to high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or history of transient ischemic attacks). That’s why I’m on low-dose aspirin. Had a stroke. So I’m on that and a blood thinner (plus my other blood pressure med). They had told me to do the chewables, but I use the pills. I wonder if there’s a difference (besides one is chewed). [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/low-dose-baby-aspirin/846158.md?page=2)