Are all Statins bad news?

[Sheffield6]

Atorvastatin 40mg headache

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Simvastatin 40mg Could not sleep

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Pravastatin 40mg Knee Joint/Back pain. Feeling hot.

Going back to doctor next week. Any advice?

[Sparky3333]

Sheffield, I agree with Londy, most of the research that is not sponsored by drug companies say that statins do not prevent heart attacks or strokes. i have been off them 4 months now and feel better than I have in years. My advice is to read as much as you can on them (Londy has very good info here) and make an informed decision . I told a Dr today that I will NEVER EVER take them again.

[Emma2017]

I was routinely put on them and had a devastating experience as can be read on my post. To top it all having had a 3D heart scan the specialist not only saw a good heart but 100% clear arteries making the statins completely unnecessary showing that a lot of us are just routinely put on them when our cholesterol is up a bit. Like Sparky on here I will never take them again unless it is shown to be absolutely necessary.

[Sparky3333 in reply to Emma2017]

I hate to sound cynical...But Drs do get bonuses for everyone they put on statins. It makes me angry that people with NO heart disease are put on them?

Sure I had a heart attack, so the popular idea was to dose me for years, but this mad preventive idea? this really is to much. My mother was told to take thalidomide when she was pregnant with me for morning sickness, the only reason i'm not typing this with my toes is my mother always went against drugs.

Modern medicine is wonderful for broken bones,surgery ect, but this whole drug culture is actually mad. So the drs are sicker than the patients really

[JudeandChris in reply to Sparky3333]

I have had muscle pain, resulting in difficulty walking for several years. Each time the statin prescription was written I was asked did I have side effects? I would reply no. Then I would go onto complaining about my muscle pains. For many years not one but several Drs did not tell me that my muscle pain could have been related to statin side effects. Until a change of another Dr (at the same clinic) said what it was and reduced the dosage by 5mg. This relieved the pain a little but it was still there. To cut a long story short after 2 years of changing statin brands and dosages all leading to the same pain in the muscles my Dr referred me to a specialist who ordered a Calcium Score test and it came back 0. I am not taking statins now, my pain has all but gone, and my quality of life has returned. I am concerned that these tablets are being over prescribed causing debilitating health issues for patients and they are not being told the truth.

[Patient007]

Yes. Awful horrible things.

[sandybrown]

All medications and procedures have side effect. some people are lucky medication and procedures agree with them whereas some of us suffer very badly. Write all your questions and answers down.

If you were given statin as primary medication to lower cholesterol ask you for other tests on your heart other than blood lipid tests to identify if there are any blockages?

Lipid numbers are high, go for statin medication is no longer a valid option, life style change also has to be discussed.

Ask for a 12 lead stress test, qrisk and jbs3 risk analysis.

[Emma2017]

I agree Sandy, however statins have topped the scales lately. This is due to the statin manufacturer/pharmaceutical having decideded to lower the cholesterol level at which statins are needed thereby upping there profit massively. The NHS apparently spent an extra half a billion on statin drugs alone last year due to them lowering this figure. Goodness knows how much it is world wide.

[lindaschleg]

Sleepnessless, severe depression and anxiety...all in 6 days... on simvastatin... took two weeks to feel like myself again... NEVER NEVER again....

[Sparky3333 in reply to lindaschleg]

And Drs continue to deny they cause these problems ? man, in the next decade this will go down as the crime of the century.

[sos007 Ambassador]

Yes they are!

Read this post - healthunlocked.com/choleste...

...and this one...

healthunlocked.com/choleste...

Now read this response I just gave to another person on this forum:

A heart attack and heart disease in general, as well as high levels of LDL cholesterol, are all, primarily, symptoms of a sub-optimal diet and lifestyle.

I had triple bypass surgery in March 2015 that required an additional 5 stents afterward because one of the 3 bypasses failed within 30 days, while the other 2 were sub-optimal.

I changed my diet and lifestyle and eventually came off of all medications in October 2016 after dropping 40 lbs.

If you want to know how to lose weight permanently without having to be hungry, read one of my previous posts here:

healthunlocked.com/choleste...

In the meantime, understand that statin drugs have significant side effects and you should do everything in your power to change your diet and lifestyle so that your blood lipid values among other bio-metrics become optimal, without the need for statin drugs.

Vitamin C - yes, Vitamin C, will lower LDL cholesterol.

After reading about the Linus Pauling Protocol - jeffreydachmd.com/heart-dis... -

- I decided to give it a try but at a reduced initial dosage.

I took 1,000 mg of vitamin C, along with 1,000 mg of Lysine (an amino acid supplement) 3 times per day. A total of 3,000 mg of each daily, along with 1,000 mg of another amino acid supplement 'Proline' (once per day).

I did this for 3 weeks prior to my October 2017 blood test. I do blood work every 3 months as part of my accountability process to ensure I maintain my healthy diet and lifestyle.

My blood work was already very good and specifically the 'bad' LDL cholesterol was in the optimal range for those without heart disease prior to me starting on the Pauling Therapy. However it was not in the optimal range recommended by cardiologists for those with existing cardiovascular disease like myself.

The 3 previous blood tests each showed incremental improvement due to my ongoing emphasis on a healthy diet and lifestyle, but then I got the results of my October blood test after 3 weeks on the Pauling Protocol and...my LDL dropped 18%! It is now within the desired range requested by my cardiologist.

I then decided to get a copy of a book written by Linus Pauling in 1986 - 'How to Live Longer and Feel Better'.

(He is a double Nobel Laureate - winning once for 'chemistry' and then again for 'peace'. He is considered the father of chemistry and his chemistry books are the textbooks read by those studying in that field.)

While reading this book (NOT a chemistry textbook) he stated 'if you take 1 mg of vitamin C, 3 times per day for 3 weeks, your LDL cholesterol should drop by...18%'!. I read this passage a few weeks AFTER I got my blood test results. I was floored!

Needless to say, I'm now a believer in Vitamin C and Linus Pauling's prescriptions for health.

For clarity, I repeat, I came off of statins in October 2016 - I did this on my own and against my cardiologist's advice. I did this because of the significant side-effects the statins had on my muscles (I was on 30 mg of Crestor - the strongest of all statins). All muscular pain symptoms gradually disappeared and now I am in full health.

In order to be healthy you need to address the root cause of the disease FIRST. That is - change your diet and lifestyle (click on the link to my post on diet and lifestyle referenced above). Take at least 3,000 mg of vitamin C daily, spread throughout the day, along with Lysine and Proline.

I've worked my way up to 5,000 mg daily as Pauling recommended for people with heart disease. Vitamin C has no toxicity and the worst that will happen is bowel intolerance (loose stools). For many people this won't happen until they get way above 6,000 mg per day (Pauling himself took 18,000 mg daily - he lived to age 94 and only started this dosage AFTER reaching 70 years of age).

By the way, get a lipid value called 'Lp(a)' measured at your next blood test - this is actually the atherogenic component of cholesterol, and not necessarily the LDL measure. You may have to pay for this test, and your doctor will unlikely be familiar with it. The Pauling Protocol helps to reduce this value which mainstream medical science says cannot be done as it is a genetically determined value.

My Lp(a) declined by 15% after initiating the Pauling Protocol.

Critically important is to eliminate all sugars in your diet - avoid packaged foods - and eliminate simple carbohydrates (read my post).

Good luck.

[Markl60]

Statins primarily do two things, they smash cholesterol levels into the ground. All evidence shows that people with higher cholesterol levels live longer especially if you are have reached 45ish plus. Secondly they lower inflamation which is probably where any benefit is derived although at the expense of side effects. The thing is you do not need a statin to lower systemic inflamation, your just need some dietary education and initially a little will power.

[Sheffield6 in reply to Markl60]

I wish I could remember where I read that Statins benefit society as a whole but discriminate against individual circumstances.

[Sheffield6 in reply to Sheffield6]

“Nice’s guidance on reducing cholesterol recommends that doctors should offer statins to people with a 10% risk of developing cardiovascular disease over 10 years. The purpose is to reduce further the numbers of people suffering heart attacks and strokes."

Comment on this from the Guardian.

"Among men, 33% of those aged 45 to 59 would be eligible according to the risk assessment tool. This increased to 95% of men aged 60 to 74 years and 100% of men aged 75 to 84. One in 10 women aged 45 to 59 would be eligible, increasing to 66% of women aged 60 to 74 and 100% of women aged 75 to 84."

Like using a hammer to crack a nut.

[Sheffield6]

3rd day not taking statins and I feel 100% better.

[Sparky3333 in reply to Sheffield6]

Wonderful!!!:))) Very pleased for you:))) I felt better after 3 days, the muscle aches took 5 months to go completely tho, thought I would be crippled for life

[Markl60]

I agree which is why I had all my amalgam fillings changed. Everyone should get a free CRP check with their GP

[Markl60]

No, my general dentist did them, she assured me that it would be safe although I do wonder for the reasons you suggest