statins should my son stop them now he is hypo hashi please advise

[Timetraveler67]

there was a post yesterday about statins not being good if you are hypo and because my son has been taking them now for 2 years I’m wondering if I should advise him to talk to his Dr about stopping as I don’t want anything to happen to him ( he’s all I have) he’s his own person and doesn’t think statins are bad for him or why would his Dr give them to him he said. If he did stop them does anyone know if you get withdrawal when you stop? He’s hypo and is on levo plus he takes antidepressants I didn’t know about the statins until a week ago when I saw them on the dashboard of his car and asked him what they were. Yesterday’s post has concerned me so if anyone can offer a bit of advice I’d be very grateful, my son is 40. thank you All for reading this x

[greygoose]

Does your son have a diagnosis of Hashi's/hypo? Is he taking levo? When did he last have a blood test? Does he have a copy of his results? How long since his diagnosis.

Sorry for all the questions, but we do need to know more about him to be able to help.

High cholesterol and depression are hypo symptoms. So, he's been hypo for longer than he realises. It's rare for people to get diagnosed right at the beginning of their illness because it takes time to for the symptoms to make themselves felt. And, by the time they drive you to the doctors, and the doctors has hummed and hawed and done loads of unnecessary tests, and finally diagnoses, the disease is usually quite well advanced. This will more than likely mean that he has low FT3, and it's low T3 that causes symptoms like high cholesterol and depression.

Just talking to his doctor probably won't do much. Very unlikely that his doctor will know that high cholesterol is linked to low T3, and I don't suppose he even knows what your son's T3 level is, they rarely test it. And doctors do seem to love prescribing statins, and think everyone should be on them. And, they're also terrified of high cholesterol, believing that it leads to heart attacks and strokes. I doesn't. This is just propaganda spread by Big Pharma who want to sell statins. Cholesterol won't kill you, but statins can cause all sorts of nasty symptoms. So why would anyone risk taking them when what they really need is the correct treatment for their hypothyroidism.

I think you should talk to your son about it. Get him to read on here, and/or do his own research.

[Zephyrbear in reply to greygoose]

A great place to start would be Dr Malcolm Kendrick’s “The Great Cholesterol Con” on sale at a popular online retailer at just £7.50!

[SlowDragon Administrator]

How much levothyroxine is he currently taking

Does he take it correctly, on empty stomach and then nothing apart from water for at least an hour after

Does he always get same brand levothyroxine at each prescription

What vitamin supplements is he taking

Recommend he gets full thyroid and vitamin testing as next step

Medichecks currently have 21% off all tests

Recommended on here that all thyroid blood tests early morning, ideally before 9am and last dose levothyroxine 24 hours before test

This gives highest TSH, lowest FT4 and most consistent results. (Patient to patient tip)

Private tests are available as NHS currently rarely tests Ft3 or all relevant vitamins

List of private testing options and money off codes

thyroiduk.org/getting-a-dia...

Medichecks Thyroid plus antibodies and vitamins

medichecks.com/products/adv...

Blue Horizon Thyroid Premium Gold includes antibodies, cortisol and vitamins

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[Dottie19 in reply to SlowDragon]

Try watching Statin Nation together . Very interesting 🧐

[Musicmonkey]

Everything I read about Statins isn't good. Apparently their benefits were overstated when promoted by pharmaceutical companies. They may add 4 days to your life, yes just 4 days, but come with many adverse effects!

I agree that your son was probably hypo long before it was recognised and it does cause high cholesterol (that's how my hypothyroidism was picked up) and depression.

Doctors are not well trained on the thyroid and often tell us we're 'normal' on our blood test results, when in fact we're not. We can waste many years feeling unwell unnecessarily. Perhaps if you can at least get that message across to your son he may take more of an interest in researching his own health. It's difficult though, when you are depressed I know 😥

[kiefer]

I'm a pharmacist and I don't recommend statins. Lowering cholesterol isn't a necessity for preventing heart disease, as it doesn't appear to have much to do with it.

Statins however, have contributed to a higher incidence of death by all causes, meaning that the negative effect it has on thinking in general has led to more death-by-accident and probably suicide. In fact, a study has shown that those with higher-than-normal cholesterol levels tend to live longer and those with the lowest cholesterol levels dying sooner.

Big Pharma has been pushing statins relentlessly because of the profit, not due to any health benefits. When you consider the fact the Big Statin has NEVER permitted a peer review of their raw data, it's obvious they have something to hide.

You'll still have to deal with the drug pusher, that is, your doctor, who won't be convinced, maybe because he has a financial investment in statins as well.

You'll want to have your son document any symptoms related to statins. That means writing down the date, time, duration and severity of the symptom. If you can break through the fear that the doctor has of his own liability, you'll get somewhere. He's been taught that not giving statins is the same thing as murdering someone, lol.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to kiefer]

Great information from someone who knows what he's talking about! I'm saving this post and hope you don't mind if I refer to it in future.

[ICE187]

7 years ago, my health turned nasty. I had a large blood test ran. My cholesterol was high "double the highest range". My TSH was also high 8+. My TSH was ignored. I was put on statins. After a few years of statins, my cholesterol didn't get any better and I was having daily kidney and liver issues. I quit taking them against my doctors orders. Earlier this year, I was having more health issues. Kidney pains, blood in urine, very high blood pressure and a lot of other symptoms. I found another doctor that looked over my 7 years of blood work and he immediately ordered a thyroid blood test. My TSH was 13.94 then. He immediately put me on Levothyroxine. I couldn't handle the 75mcg dose, so I cut my pills in half. I started to feel better. 6 weeks later, my blood test had shown my TSH to be 17.22. I then took the full 75mcg without any issues. My recent blood tests shows my TSH at 10.35. My cholesterol is dropping and my kidney function is improving. My doctor said statins cause kidney failure and liver issues. My Levo dose is about to go up to 100mcg. I assume my high cholesterol will drop even more. I am now against statins. As far as withdrawls from stopping my statins, I had no issues and I stopped instantly.

[Partner20]

Do you know exactly why your son was prescribed statins? This medication is obviously proving controversial, with many on this forum outspokenly anti-statin. You need to do your own research in combination with the reason for your son's prescription. Statins are erroneously thought to be prescribed solely for cholesterol reduction, but there are other reasons too. Personally speaking, my own cholesterol levels were high before I started taking levo, but despite optimising my thyroid levels, my cholesterol levels did not decrease. We are all different. Find out more information on statins by checking the British Heart Foundation group here on HealthUnlocked.

[Timetraveler67 in reply to Partner20]

Prescribed for a fatty liver a few years ago thanks for replying I am doing a bit of research thanks again