An aspirin a day keeps bowel cancer at bay

LONDON - Taking just an aspirin a day could protect you from bowel cancer.

Scientists found that those who took a small, 75 mg aspirin tablet for a year were 22 percent less likely to develop bowel cancer.

The longer the pills were taken, the greater the benefits. Those who took a daily dose for five years had 30 percent less chance of getting the illness.

Experts say that the research offers new hope in the prevention of bowel cancer, which affects 38,500 people in the UK alone every year, reports the Daily Mail.

Scientists led by Prof Malcolm Dunlop at the University of Edinburgh looked at the effects of aspirin on almost 6,000 people, half who had bowel cancer and half who did not, according to the journal Gut.

They found that healthy individuals who took a single pill daily after a year were 22 percent less likely to develop bowel cancer rising to 30 percent among people who took the tablets for five years.

The research found that doubling the dose of aspirin did not bring any added benefits.

Experts say that although the findings are very promising, people should consult their doctors before taking the pills as there are potentially dangerous side effects.

Aspirin has been known to cause stomach ulcers, internal bleeding as well as heartburn and nausea.