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9 Unusual Uses for Aspirin

9 Unusual Uses for Aspirin
It's 6:30 AM and you feel a tightness in your chest. Antacids don't help. Your jaw is tightly set and your arm feels numb. Heart attack? Or is it an unreasonable response to a new zit? Either way, aspirin can help.

From heart attacks to zits, in the garden and the laundry room, aspirin has a ton of uses beyond relieving pain. Some of these I've tried, others I should try but haven't, and a few I hope to never try. You, the reader, are left to judge which is which. 
 
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Step 1Heart attack mitigation

Heart attack mitigation
If you're feeling a bit of a heart attack coming on, pop some aspirin and dial 911. (Or your local emergency number.)

The aspirin has an anti-clotting effect that inhibits platelets from doing their little plateletty jobs. You know, hanging out together in large groups, getting rowdy, and creating thromboses. This is perfect for those occasions when you're on the verge of death due to an unplanned cardiac episode.

According to the American Journal of Cardiology, chewing the aspirin has a more immediate effect than washing the pills down with a cool glass of water. So that's good to know. Especially if you're a man over 50 with less plaque on your teeth than in your arteries.
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146 comments
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Dec 11, 2011. 11:49 AMMig Welder says:
Basically, this (and your barf one) is my all-time favorite Instructable. Also, you are my favorite Instructable author. The sense of humor, usefulness, and diverse vocabulary, all coupled with correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation makes for a winning Instructable. Finding people on the internet that know how to spell is oh so difficult.
I learned a bit and had some good laughs while reading your 'ibles.
Thanks!
Dec 11, 2011. 7:10 PM-max- says:
so asprin + sulfuric acid -> vinigar? cool
Dec 11, 2011. 4:05 PMnsmith1 says:
And how about shaving in the shower while the aspirin does it's job.
Dec 11, 2011. 9:21 AMkoldham says:
car battery's are 12 volt. peeing on it wont hurt you, it might short out the battery tho.
Dec 6, 2011. 7:16 PM15zhangfra says:
so does aspririn restore blonde hair color, or does it somewhat bleach your hair? i have a dandruff problem and i'm thinking of using aspirin to get rid of it, but i'd hate for my hair to get bleached (i have black hair and any amount of bleaching will look odd and lead to funny scenarios....)
Nov 9, 2011. 5:26 AMPhoghat says:
For a hangover, besides the aspirin, take some high dose of a B-Complex tablets (usually known as b 100, a 100mg of each of the B vitamins), and drink something with a bit of salt like V8 or Clamato juice. Alcohol really depletes the B vitamins and drinking causes dehydration. You have to replace those electrolytes and water to feel better fast!
Oct 30, 2011. 2:18 PMtaria says:
I got number 10 for yeah if no ones already mentioned it. drop an aspirin in with cut flowers and it extends the life of the flowers a bit longer. I do it all the time.

just thought id share...:)
Sep 15, 2011. 9:42 PMjibblesmgee says:
The only truly safe cure for hangovers is to quit drinking... but you'll still need an asprin once in a while. This is a nice instructable, I learned alot!
Sep 20, 2011. 3:37 PMFlatLinerMEDIC says:
YESSSSS! agreed. Quit drinking. Or if you do... 1 or 2 is enough alcohol is a drug not a hydrating drink...dont even get me started on how bad soft drinks are for you!
Sep 12, 2011. 10:26 PMtheRobertBush says:
asprin is a rooting hormone. well, parts of it. someone else mentioned the willow bark. these are related characteristics. in fact, a rooting solution can be made by gently heating willow "new growth" in water.
Sep 12, 2011. 10:19 PMtheRobertBush says:
salicylic acid is also the active ingredient in many acne treatments, especially astringents.
Sep 11, 2011. 7:53 AMproinsias says:
Now I know why when I complained of a headache, my mother woulds say, "Go chew on tree bark." But she did not tell us to use a willow tree. They were by the river and we were not allowed to go down there.
Aug 30, 2011. 11:40 PMdollgrownup says:
I've been using this as a great exfoliant scrub with a little bit of honey. I leave it on as a mask for a few minutes, scrub, then rinse. It really does help the skin and makes it feel so soft afterwards.
Mar 20, 2011. 8:33 AMLogM813 says:
Best hangover cure is weed. Don't say it isn't if you haven't tried it.
Jul 14, 2011. 6:03 PMiamjello7 says:
Indeed.
Jul 13, 2011. 2:26 PMjooijen says:
the best cure for a hangover is...... to keep drinking lol!!!
Apr 3, 2011. 12:42 PMHades di Angelo says:
weed?your'e using a drug to get rid of the side effects of a drug. That's like shooting into a bullet wound to get the bullet out
Jun 12, 2011. 7:01 PMtverma says:
Aspirin is a drug too.
Jul 4, 2011. 6:50 PMHades di Angelo says:
Sorry i meant a drug with negative effects to get rid of a drug with negative effects
Sep 11, 2011. 8:52 AMtkjtkj says:
Aspirin can have some rather serious negative side-effects, including:
1) gastritis : irritation with possible bleeding in the stomach
2) make a disease-based or drug-induced 'anti-coagulant' state into a serious problem.
3) make worse a cerebral bleed type of stroke
4) cause gout (as it competes with uric acid for the kidney's method of ridding your body of uric acid (urate). So, the urate increases and in some individuals gout can onset.

I'm not aware of anything ingested that can't have any negative side-effects ... yes, including food and water!
Sep 11, 2011. 9:37 PMtverma says:
too much water is a very bad thing.
Aug 21, 2011. 5:36 PMustina says:
weeds not bad
Sep 8, 2011. 12:23 PMkretzlord says:
and weed makes you thirsty, so you drink more water. Haven't tried the aspirin, but a 32 oz powerade helps me every time!
Mar 22, 2011. 10:22 AMmattyfu says:
It cures the nausea and makes drinking a ton of water more likely.
Mar 20, 2011. 11:48 AMm1ndtr1p says:
No, not even close... If anything, weed makes it worse. No offense, but please know what you're talking about before suggesting something as ridiculous as that.

The best cure for hangover is not going overboard with your drinking, if you must get trashed, drink quality liquor instead of the cheap $10 bottle of vodka... The reason you have hangovers is due to the way the liquor was distilled, lower quality liquor is usually only distilled once, so there's still methanol left in the final product after the distillation process, which is what causes hangovers... Higher quality liquors are distilled multiple times (usually 4-5 times, but some have been known to be distilled up to a dozen times) to further reduce the amount of methanol left after the distillation process, and therefore the higher quality liquor is less prone to cause hangovers...

If you must drink cheap booze, drinking lots of water throughout the night and eating a couple slices of bread before you go to bed helps avoid or reduce the intensity of your hangover in the morning as well
Dec 11, 2011. 8:10 AMbonecholampworks says:
The medical benefits of marijuana have only recently been realized...
As a lifelong migraine sufferer (albeit, slightly different than a hangover...) I've use weed as a pain reliever, and as a preventative. It's been found to have so many medical benefits - right down to relief of irritable bowel syndrome...so whose really to say that it might not work for hangovers? Until unbiased medical studies are done, no one can attest to that.
Sep 26, 2011. 11:29 AMRoflolommo says:
Hangovers are caused by dehydration/Fusel oils. There's less fusel oils in higher quality liquors due to more distillation cycles. Darker liquors have more fusel oils (they purposely leave them in whiskey to give it taste) whereas vodka their going for just ethanol and water. According to scientific studies marijuana reduces nausea and dulls headaches. So yes it is effective to reduce a hangover.
Jul 12, 2011. 11:39 AMalsports2000 says:
That's new information for me and I am not a chain drinker of liquor but I would like to know what liquors are considered higher quality liquors??. Thanks. AL.
Apr 4, 2011. 10:56 PMNdawg says:
I disagree, weed is a great cure for hangovers. I've used it many time.

That being said, If you have the 'spins' at all, weed will just make you spin more and eventually throw up.

At least this is what I've found to be true.
Smoke weed everyday.
May 28, 2011. 5:37 PMThe nerdling says:
thanks for helping i'll try it
Mar 22, 2011. 1:50 PMrobecker says:
Acetylsalacylic acid (aspirin) and salacylic acid (acne wash) are more alphabetically similar than chemically. Salacylic acid loosens the connections between keratinocytes (skin cells) and aids exfoliation, while ASA is a potent anti-inflammatory, inhibiting the prostaglandin cascade - it reduces the redness and puffiness of a zit. It has long been used in Hollywood (as well as the adult entertainment industry) to reduce the appearance of blemishes from acne or hair removal.
-friendly dermatologist.
Apr 28, 2011. 9:59 AMJohnLeFou says:
The above is true, but you DO get salicylic acid by water hydrolysis. When ASA is left wet for a little bit, hydrolysis to Salicylic acid and Acetic acid (vinegar) occurs. This is why if you take a whiff of an aspirin bottle it has that vinegar smell from the ASA that degraded from ambient humidity, and also why there is no liquid formulation of aspirin. If you are thinking ahead as to why it doesn't degrade (as much) when we take it, ASA is almost completely absorbed in the stomach rather than the rest of the intestines. This is due to the acidic conditions that keep it protonated until it can get through to the systemic circulation.

It is a great double whammy of anti-inflammatory and keratolytic action.

Apr 4, 2011. 3:01 AMadunster says:
I think plants can help you almost as much, or more than you can help them during a zombie invasion: http://www.popcap.com/games/free/pvz/?icid=pvz_HP_OL_1_8_19_08_en
Mar 20, 2011. 10:11 AMvincent7520 says:
True, men outnumber women in the engineer trades by nearly 100%.
But even 0,1% of female engineers in the world amount to more than 50 !!!…
Otherwise we would have so little of the whole type that we won't have to bother with Tchernobyls, BPs, CO2, and our regular leisures would still be reading, and chopping wood for the winter instead of fixing our Macs or surfing on the web !…
OK I'm joking. Many engineers (male or female) are very efficient people and work to ease our life, not poison it.
Still as I know at least 20 women engineer in my own city I'm sure that even in the USA, which is not the most prone towards equality between genders, you'll find more than 50 engineer women who do not need to be as sexy and beautiful as the latest Hollywood star to get a job in their field and be goddam as efficient as men !!!…
This was my "equality between sexes" deed of the day :-)
Have a nice week end !…
Apr 3, 2011. 10:10 AMkac0802 says:
...I'm pretty sure it was supposed to be a humorous hyperbole.
Apr 3, 2011. 3:17 PMvincent7520 says:
So am I ! … But as I said this was my good "equality between sexes" deed of the day (or to be more honest, should I say of the year ?…)
Greetings !
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Author:wilgubeast(Extracurricular Instructions)
I taught English, History, and sex ed to middle school kids. Then I worked as a handyman. Now I work at Instructables.