The White House has a new reason for why Donald Trump’s hands are consistently bruised. The President’s Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt, told CBS News that Trump ‘hit his hand’ on the corner of the signing table at the Board of Peace event on Thursday in Davos, Switzerland, ‘causing it to bruise.’ The noticeable contusion was seen on Trump’s left hand, which is not the one normally covered with makeup to conceal the discoloration of a bruise. Previously, Leavitt has said that Trump’s right hand is chronically bruised because of the frequency in which he shakes people’s hands.
Trump Links Hand Bruising to High Aspirin Dose
The President told the Wall Street Journal in a New Year’s Day article that he bruises easier because he is defying doctors by taking higher-than-recommended daily doses of aspirin to keep his blood thin. At the start of the Board of Peace event at the World Economic Forum on Thursday, Trump did not have a bruise, according to images and reporters who were in the room. But images emerged later, showing a large purple bruise had developed on his hand, and one White House official noted to CBS the aspirin usage that Trump admitted to earlier this month.
The president is dosing more aspirin than his doctors recommend because ‘I’m a little superstitious,’ he confessed to the Journal. ‘They say aspirin is good for thinning out the blood, and I don’t want thick blood pouring through my heart,’ Trump went on. ‘I want nice, thin blood pouring through my heart. Does that make sense?’ Instead of listening to medical advice, the 79-year-old is defying doctor’s orders and relying on what he calls his ‘good genetics.’
Trump Admits Doctors Advised Lower Aspirin Dose
Trump is taking 325 milligrams per day, which he says he’s been dosing for 25 years. He admitted that doctors have encouraged him to take a lower dosage of aspirin. A low dose is usually approximately 81 milligrams, according to the Mayo Clinic. Taking higher dosages of aspirin can significantly increase the severity of side effects including more serious ones like internal bleeding in the stomach, intestines and brain – especially in older patients. But the biggest benefit is potentially avoiding a heart attack by keeping blood thinner so the flow is stronger.
The thinned blood also stops blood cells from clumping together to form clots, which slows the body’s ability to stop bleeding from broken capillaries and leading to more noticeable and larger bruising. Trump’s right hand is often pictured with a glob of cover-up make up that Leavitt confirms is concealing bruising, which she says are a result of the president regularly shaking people’s hands. At 79-years-old, Trump is the oldest person to be elected and serve as US president.
