President Donald Trump has finally offered an explanation for the mysterious bruises that have been popping up on his hands for months, and instead of calming concerns, his answer has only poured gasoline on the fire. In a rambling and defensive interview with The Wall Street Journal, the 79-year-old president revealed that he has been taking a full-strength aspirin every single day for more than 25 years, against his doctors’ advice. Trump said he takes 325 milligrams daily, four times the commonly recommended low dose, because he believes it prevents his blood from becoming “too thick.”
“I’m a little superstitious,” Trump said, brushing aside medical guidance while making it clear he has no intention of stopping. The president directly blamed the dark, recurring bruises on his hands on the aspirin habit, marks that have become increasingly noticeable at public appearances and have fueled months of speculation about his health.
🚨BREAKING: President Trump says White House doctors confirmed he’s in perfect health and that he aced his cognitive exam for the third straight time.
He’s calling for mandatory cognitive tests for anyone running for president or vice president. pic.twitter.com/G49ksYjIei
— Derrick Evans (@DerrickEvans4WV) January 2, 2026
Those bruises first caught the public’s attention earlier this year, when reporters began asking questions. At the time, the White House waved them away, insisting they were simply the result of “frequent handshaking.” But the marks kept coming back, most recently reappearing at the Kennedy Center Honors, and so did the questions. Now Trump admits he often covers them with makeup after getting “whacked again by someone,” explaining it takes him “about 10 seconds” to hide the discoloration before stepping in front of cameras.
The aspirin confession lands amid growing scrutiny of Trump’s overall health. Critics have raised alarms over everything from swollen ankles tied to chronic venous insufficiency to moments of apparent confusion, visible fatigue, and wandering, off-topic monologues during speeches. There have also been repeated instances where cameras appeared to catch Trump nodding off during official events, something the president flatly denies. “I’ll just close. It’s very relaxing to me,” he said, insisting those images were nothing more than mid-blinks frozen by cameras.
Behind the scenes, staffers have reportedly asked cabinet members to speak louder during meetings, though aides deny Trump has any hearing issues. Despite official White House assurances that the president remains in “exceptional health,” Trump himself seems irritated that his condition keeps dominating headlines. He complained that releasing the results of a cardiovascular and abdominal scan last fall, initially labeled a “routine MRI,” even though such imaging is not standard in physical exams, only handed critics “ammunition.”
Trump’s cankles aren’t looking good. He’s been on vacation for weeks and his health is still declining. pic.twitter.com/7m60SV2dnk
— Dexter the Dog (@dexter_doggie) January 1, 2026
“I would have been a lot better off if they didn’t,” Trump said, while once again declaring that “nothing’s wrong.” Yet Trump’s own admissions paint a striking picture: a president who sleeps little, avoids exercise beyond golf because it’s “boring,” sticks to a high-fat diet, and routinely overrides medical advice based on personal beliefs, all while asking Americans to simply trust that his health is “perfect.”
By placing aspirin at the center of his explanation, Trump may have inadvertently created a new symbol for critics’ deepest concern: not just his physical condition, but his habit of ignoring experts, dismissing evidence, and trusting his instincts above all else. Social media erupted after the interview. “Well he’s an idiot and a pathological liar,” one Threads user wrote.
“Now you know you can’t tell Dr. Trump anything as he knows better than someone who actually went to medical school,” another said. And one commenter summed up the broader frustration: “Because he knows more than the doctors. Just like he knows more than the generals and the diplomats and the climate scientists and …”
