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Bayer Aspirin can reduce the risk of death if taken as directed by a doctor as soon as a heart attack is suspected, the company says. The FDA says that as little as half (160 mg) of a regular-strength aspirin tablet reduces the risk of death by up to 23 percent if taken when a heart attack is suspected and continued for 30 days thereafter. Aspirin taken during a suspected heart attack can also lessen the damaging effects of the heart attack.

For those who have suffered from a previous heart attack, aspirin can help prevent future heart attacks. A regimen of aspirin for people who already had a previous heart attack reduced the risk of a second heart attack by about a third, the company says.