Is aspirin synthetic or natural?
Yet, while aspirin has been one of the most popular pharmaceutical agents of the past one hundred years, it is actually a synthetic derivative of the natural substance salicylic acid—the associated healing properties of which have been known for millennia.
What are the synthetic and organic aspirins?
Aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) is a synthetic organic derived from salicylic acid. Salicylic acid is a natural product found in the bark of the willow tree and was used by the ancient Greeks and Native Americans, among others, to counter fever and pain. However, salicylic acid is bitter and irritates the stomach.
How is aspirin produced?
Aspirin is prepared by chemical synthesis from salicylic acid, through acetylation with acetic anhydride. The molecular weight of aspirin is 180.16g/mol. It is odourless, colourless to white crystals or crystalline powder.
Is there an alternative to aspirin?
Are there alternatives to low-dose aspirin? If you can’t take low-dose aspirin, you may be able to take another blood thinning medicine, such as clopidogrel, instead. Like aspirin, these medicines prevent blood clots from forming and reduce the chances of heart attack and stroke in people at high risk of them.
What food works like aspirin?
Like aspirin, ginger works as a blood thinner which can prevent the formation of clots that can lead to heart attack or stroke. Ginger also reduces inflammation in the same way as aspirin by blocking COX-2 — the enzyme that promotes inflammation.
What can I take in place of aspirin?
Tylenol, the widely used alternative to aspirin, is an analgesic, or pain reliever, and fever-reducing drug. The drug is often used by people who are allergic to aspirin or who suffer medical problems, notably stomach ulcers or such bleeding conditions as hemophilia, that make aspirin use unsuitable.
How much aspirin is made per year?
Approximately 35,000 metric tons are produced and consumed each year, enough to make over 100 billion standard aspirin tablets. It is estimated that over one trillion aspirin tablets have been consumed in the past 100 years.