President Donald Trump is responding to growing concerns about his health and stamina. People close to him describe a 79-year-old president who has noticeably slowed since his first term and is showing more signs of aging in public and private.
According to a New Year’s Day report in The Wall Street Journal, Trump has been sleeping little. He seems to struggle to keep his eyes open during televised West Wing events. This has led aides, donors, and friends to speak louder in meetings because he has difficulty hearing.
However, Trump is pushing back hard and relying on his favorite excuse: “good genetics.”
The report highlights a president who sometimes ignores medical advice while trying to maintain a sense of normalcy. Trump told the Journal he takes more aspirin than his doctors suggest and noted it leaves visible bruises.
“They’d rather have me take the smaller one,” Trump said. “I take the larger one, but I’ve done it for years, and what it does do is it causes bruising.”
His physician, Navy Capt. Sean Barbabella, stated that Trump takes 325 milligrams of aspirin each day for “cardiac prevention.” The Journal compared this to the typical low dose of 81 milligrams. Trump said he has resisted lowering the dose because he’s been taking it for decades.
“I’m a little superstitious,” he told the paper.
Trump also provided a direct, almost casual reasoning for why he believes he knows better than the medical warnings.
“They say aspirin is good for thinning out the blood, and I don’t want thick blood pouring through my heart,” he explained. “I want nice, thin blood pouring through my heart. Does that make sense?”
The Journal report points out other visible signals that have sparked conversations inside and outside the White House. This includes bruising and swelling, as well as a brief attempt at using compression socks for his swollen ankles, which he stopped using because he didn’t like them.
Trump mentioned he regrets undergoing advanced imaging in October. He feels it invited scrutiny even though he and his team insist the results were fine.
“In retrospect, it’s too bad I took it because it gave them a little ammunition,” Trump said about the scan. “I would have been a lot better off if they didn’t, because the fact that I took it said, ‘Oh gee, is something wrong?’ Well, nothing’s wrong.”
Barbabella and Trump have maintained a reassuring message, portraying him as healthy and capable. They cite imaging that showed no cardiovascular issues and a “cardiac age of 65.” Aides point to the pace of his schedule and his constant communication as proof that he is still in charge.
However, the report also reveals a president whose daily routines do not reflect the neat image his allies prefer. Aside from golf, Trump does not engage in regular exercise and dismissed the idea of structured workouts.
“I just don’t like it. It’s boring,” he said.
Regarding his diet, the Journal notes he is known for salty, fatty foods like hamburgers and fries, another ongoing detail that resurfaces when discussions about Trump’s health arise.
It appears that Trump remains in denial about slowing down, even as his aides try to get him to rest more. At 79 years of age, the president is just in the first year of his second term and is not expected to get any sharper at 80.
