Ezetimibe and diet

[Mart25]

I take ezetimibe 10mg with atorvastatin 40mg. I am suffering from bloating, gas and abdominal pain all of which are known side-effects of ezetimibe (and, sometimes, statins too). I know some of you hearties will be taking this same combination of cholesterol lowering meds. Do any of you know whether changing your diet in any way makes the side-effects better? ........ or is there anything to avoid that makes things worse? I really want to stick with these meds becasuse they do a great job on my cholesterol levels, but it would be nice to be more comfortable. Suggestions?

[Heather1957]

I take both of these but 80 mg Atorvastanin and luckily I don't have any issues so far, but am interested in any replies just in case.

[JennyRx]

I was taking both but having a statin break atm but still on ezetimibe. I do have days of bloating, flatulence and some diarrhoea and others are ok. I’m on low carb diet as was pre-diabetic but now out of the danger zone. But it can be quite high fat and I think that makes the ezetimibe side effects worse when I eat too much of it.

[Mart25 in reply to JennyRx]

Thanks. My diet is quite low on fat but I've been a bit suspicious that occasional fat might make my bloating worse. And you think that might true too. Interesting.

[FarhanH]

Rabizole 20 mg . And occasional cane of sprite will ease your bloating problem. I am taking ezetimibe and fluvastatin for the last 6 years.

[Gail1967]

Hi- I’m on the 80mg statin & 10mg ezetimibe combo- no problems that I’m aware of. I did suffer with a bad tummy earlier this year but had lanzoprolol (?- gastro resistant tablet) changed & that sorted it out.

[Mart25 in reply to Gail1967]

Thanks. I'm Lansoprazole too, which makes it a bit harder to work out what's happening. But I've been taking that for years without much of a problem. But what did you change Lansoprazole to? It seems to be the preferred proton-pump inhibitor at the moment.

[Gail1967 in reply to Mart25]

I saw a gastro expert & he mentioned it may be worth changing. At same time there was a report in paper about gut bacteria being affected by lan…, anyway I am now on rabeprazole & it has settled down

[Mart25 in reply to Gail1967]

Thanks for the info. Useful.

[frenchman96]

EzetimibeThe only contribution I can make is about my situation. I had my HA 5 weeks ago and had 1 stent fitted. The meds I brought home from the hospital are >>CLOPIDOGREL 75MG--ASPIRIN 75MG--AVORVASTATIN 80MG--BISOPROLOL 1.25mg--LANSOPRAZOLE. Since then I have lost 5 lbs and have been having a bowel movement 3-5 times daily.

On top of that, I have cut out most, if not all fat, especially butter, in any foods bought, so my personal conclusion was, either the butter substitute (Vitalife, made from Rapeseed oil) or the meds that were causing this. Since then, I have seeked advice from my cardiac rehabilitation support, and a very experienced pharmacist and the conclusion was, the combination of meds and diet, especially the high dose of statin. Hope this helps

[Mart25 in reply to frenchman96]

Thanks. There may be a theme emerging that dietary fats might be partially involved in the intestinal disturbance with our combination of meds.

[patchydrizzle]

I am on the same as you. I did once suspect that ezetemibe was upsetting me a bit in the bowel movement department (no bloating or wind but phases where poo had cake-mix consistency - apologies for the graphic detail) , and stopped taking it for a year, but it didn't really make any difference - perhaps its the statins ? I live with it, because without the statins my cholesterol level would be very high (familial hypercholesterolemia).

[Mart25 in reply to patchydrizzle]

Thanks for replying. Without adding any additional detail (!), I'm much the same as you in the bowel department. But my abdominal pain is much better when I take care with fat in my diet. I take lansoprazole and I think that disturbs me too. I live with it as well.