STATINS

Georgia Ede MD

 Northampton MA January 6, 2018

Unfortunately, all statin drugs cross the blood-brain barrier and interfere with cholesterol synthesis in the brain. This is NOT good.

Although the brain represents only 2% of total body weight, it contains 20% of the body's cholesterol. And because cholesterol cannot cross from the bloodstream into the brain, the brain manufactures all of its own cholesterol on site. Synapses are lined by cholesterol-rich membranes responsible for passing neurotransmitters back and forth. Myelin, the white matter that insulates brain circuits, is made from tightly-wound membranes containing 75% of the brain's cholesterol. Cholesterol also helps guide developing nerve endings to their destinations on "lipid rafts". If the brain is too low in cholesterol, its membranes, synapses, myelin and lipid rafts can't form or function properly, bringing all brain activity—including mood regulation, learning, and memory— to a screeching halt. 

All statin drug package inserts include a warning about cognitive side effects. If you value your mental health, it is important to weigh the (questionable) benefits of taking these drugs, which interfere with the body's natural pathways, against the risks to your brain health. Those pathways are there for a reason. Always better to address cholesterol problems through diet and lifestyle changes than with drugs if you can. 

There's more information here: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/diagnosis-diet/201709/low-brain-cholesterol-separating-fact-fiction

Michael Singer

 San Jose, California January 9, 2018

I am 74 and was advised to start taking statins. I did not and here is why.

First off, all my blood counts were within limits, I am not overweight, I do not smoke, I exercise regularly, etc.

I am a retired engineer. I had to take a lot of math. I looked at the formulas that are used to determine whether a person should take statins. The math in me said to test the formula. Find it's limits.

All of the formulas used seem to be bogus. If you put in all good data and drop the cholesterol to the lowest amount the formula will accept, it still says you need to take a statin. It seems that the formula is age based. Nothing else matters. 

Try it with your own data and see. The formulas are all online. Try putting in a cholesterol of 0. It will then tell you the lowest number it will take. Use the lowest number and see. Do it over and over but just keep increasing your age. You will need statins no matter what your cholesterol level is.

LaBamba

 NYC January 5, 2018

Statins block the re-uptake of cholesterol in the colon back into the blood stream. Which lowers total blood cholesterol. So does soluble fibre like Oatmeal and psyllium. Why suffer the side effects of statin drugs when you can enjoy a steaming hot bowl of oatmeal with fruit and yogurt every morning? This is well known and studied. Denis Burkett, MD, studied this in Africa fifty years ago attempting to discover why the Bantu and other groups rarely suffered heart disease. Answer: high fibre diet and soluble fibre especially.

dan s

 blacksburg va January 6, 2018

Statins are a $30 billion/year scam. They are dangerous and ineffective. 

Drug companies faked the data on statins, to make them appear safer and more effective than they really are. The truth is that they cause diabetes, neurological damage, muscle damage and other adverse effects. 

Risk of cardio disease is easily and safety reduced through diet and nutrient supplementation (vitamin D, K2, magnesium, vit C, vit E, CoQ10 etc).

david x

 new haven ct January 7, 2018

At age 69, I was training to return to the Himalayas to trek, as I had the year before. Seven months later, I couldn't walk around the block. My neuromuscular specialist expressed it well: "In those genetically predisposed, statins can trigger diseases they wouldn't have gotten for 30 years." 

I asked my statin- prescribing cardiologist if I wasn't actually at low risk with HDL of 88 and triglycerides of 67. I asked if there was a DNA test to predict problems. He said the science wasn't there yet. Wrong: I had the test 8 months later. The cardiologist's practice received over $200k from Merck and Pfizer, top statin makers.

Is it coincidence that "Dr. Paul Ridker, a self-described 'statin advocate'" received $194,000 in drug company money from 2013-2015 (and how much more since then?)? Dollars for Docs is where to look.
The majority of the ACC/AHA panel on statins in 2013 had financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry. Read Overdo$sed America to see how profoundly Big Pharma money has distorted our healthcare system.

Regarding adverse effects, so glibly dismissed in this article, in the US doctors aren't required or paid to report them...and they don't. No one knows, therefore, that more serious side effects are "very rare". BMJ published an article documenting much more common and severe side effects: Dr Collins, sponsored by Pfizer, demanded the article be removed. 

See StatinVictims.com, or Stopped Our Statins to see the suffering.

SMC

 West Tisbury MA January 5, 2018

The NYT had an article about a French study of Statins. The fed a large amount of Statins to mice but only for two weeks. When they dissected them every muscle in their bodies was deteriorating. And what is the most important muscle? The heart!!

Statins work by reducing the amount of cholesterol created by the liver. Statins also stop your body from making other things it needs, such as Co-Enzyme Q10 which muscles need. At the very least if you take Statins , take CQ-10 or ubiquinol.
And be pro-active and study what they give you.
Doctors, God bless them, follow a standard protocol for millions of people, not necessarily what works for you as an individual.
And get your Lp (a) checked. { pronounced Lipidprotein small a}

Mel Farrell

 NY January 8, 2018

Some of us are fortunate to have GP's who can be said to be friends, and only prescribe basic necessary medication, and only when warranted.

My doctor is one of these decent human beings, and while money is one reason he works in the profession, the overarching reason is his love of his profession and desire to do good.

Sounds unbelievable, right ?? But it's true.

I've learned much from him about healthcare in these United States, especially insofar as Big Pharma is concerned, and believe me when I say Big Pharma with the aid of the FDA brings to market medications which are somewhat beneficial, but after medium to long term use, become deadly.

When I was told my cholesterol was too high, my doctor and I discussed changing my diet and exercise as the solution. When I suggested a statin he explained what the dangers were and needless to say, I heard him.

Now, some years later, my annual checkups show my cardiovascular system to be equal to that of a healthy 30 year old; not bad for a 68 year old male.

A word to the wise; eat healthy, exercise, don't smoke anything, limit alcohol intake, and get at least 6 to 8 hours sleep every night.

And by the way, it's never too late to start. Begin a program while gradually weaning off whatever statin you are on.

Oh, and please, please remember, that Big Pharma exists to make money, not make you healthy, no lucre in that, is there ??

nobrien1

 manlius, NY January 6, 2018

Since a 2009 UCLA study [http://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/majority-of-hospitalized-heart-75668] found that 75% of people admitted for heart attacks had normal cholesterol, I question if statins are needed at all. The 'knee-jerk' response of statin advocates might be that the LDL threshold for use of statins should be lowered. If your only tool is a hammer, then everything looks like a nail. The original studies identifying cholesterol as the heart health issue were flawed by use of relative percentages in results, cherry-picking of data, poor study design, etc., etc.

dan s

 blacksburg va January 6, 2018

The American Heart Association receives millions every year from the pharmaceutical industry. The AHA is not independent. The AHA helps the pharma industry sell their dangerous and ineffective statin drugs. 

http://www.heart.org/idc/groups/heart-public/@wcm/@fin/documents/downloadable/ucm_483997.pdf

http://www.heart.org/idc/groups/heart-public/@wcm/@fin/documents/downloadable/ucm_483997.pdf

Prudence

 Wisconsin January 9, 2018

I find this an incredibly superficial look at statins. Two older adults in my life experienced short term memory issues as soon as they were put on statins. In the case of my mother-in-law, I noticed the problem and did a net search on the drugs and its side effects. This was perhaps 10 years ago and very little came up except a) people were going on record with short term memory issues and b) the medical profession pooh-poohed it, one report dismissing the issue with "some FEMALE patients have reported problems" (my caps). Fast forward another five years and my then 85 year old father suddenly had a statin added to his bevy of prescriptions. Up to then, he had every one of his marbles. Suddenly, he couldn't track in conversations, which set up very impatient interchanges between him and my brother, who was his caregiver. Although not especially robust, he also visibly lost muscle. By this time, there were more reports and concern to be found on the Internet and the specific statin he was prescribed (I forget its name, but it began with "I") was noted as notorious for crossing the blood-brain barrier. I related my concerns to my brother and suggested the next time Pop saw his internist that the statins perhaps should be dropped. They were. His memory improved, but I think the muscle loss did not and ultimately contributed to his eventual fall that cracked a hip and started down that sad road to his death. I'm not going to touch them!

Source:  https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/05/health/statin-over-75.html