Statins

lainy1953

Newbie
Messages
3
Type of diabetes
Prediabetes
Hi, I am newly diagnosed Type 2. At my appointment with the diabetic nurse I was told my level was 49 and they don't prescribe diabetic medication until your reading is 55. However she prescribed a statin. Having read up about statins I find that they raise your blood sugar level. Can anyone explain the sense in that.
 

Goonergal

Master
Retired Moderator
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13,466
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Hi @lainy1953

There is an excellent thread on this subject here. Have a good read: https://www.diabetes.co.uk/forum/threads/cholesterol-and-statins.156985/

How are you managing your diabetes? Have you made any changes to what you eat? There is significant evidence that reducing carbohydrate intake not only brings blood sugars down, but also improves your cholesterol profile (better triglycerides and higher HDL). This study is from a well known GP practice: https://nutrition.bmj.com/content/bmjnph/3/2/285.full.pdf?with-ds=yes
 

bulkbiker

BANNED
Messages
19,576
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Hi, I am newly diagnosed Type 2. At my appointment with the diabetic nurse I was told my level was 49 and they don't prescribe diabetic medication until your reading is 55. However she prescribed a statin. Having read up about statins I find that they raise your blood sugar level. Can anyone explain the sense in that.

Nope ... but your surgery will get extra money if they have prescribed them to you...can you believe that?

Edit to add this article

https://www.patrickholford.com/advice/how-gps-are-paid-to-prescribe-ineffective-drugs
 

Daibell

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12,642
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LADA
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Insulin
No one should take statins just because they have diabetes. Any GP or nurse who does that is being irresponsible without doing lipids tests. If you lipids results show your HDL, LDL, Trigs etc ratios are not good then it's worth considering taking the minimum dose that brings them in line. Statins are not a diabetes med and can be harmful for some people.
 

KennyA

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2,913
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I've always refused statins. The evidence base for people in my situation (ie no previous coronary issues) shows no benefit. And now it seems my lipids are improving (a little) all by themselves - maybe the low carb and weight loss has something to do with it.
 
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Daphne917

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3,320
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Hi, I am newly diagnosed Type 2. At my appointment with the diabetic nurse I was told my level was 49 and they don't prescribe diabetic medication until your reading is 55. However she prescribed a statin. Having read up about statins I find that they raise your blood sugar level. Can anyone explain the sense in that.
I was prescribed a statin when diagnosed with an hba1c of 48 after being told by my DN that ‘all diabetics should be on them’ - 6 months later it had risen to 54. After I came off them for other side effects my BS returned to normal where it has stayed for approx 8 years. I used to have the ‘you should be on statins’ conversation at every check up mbut when I saw a different GP in the practice he was surprised at the effect they had and has now annotated my notes with ‘statin intolerant’ as we don’t want to risk it happening again.
 

Andydragon

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Retired Moderator
Messages
3,324
Type of diabetes
Type 2 (in remission!)
Treatment type
Diet only
I was prescribed a statin when diagnosed with an hba1c of 48 after being told by my DN that ‘all diabetics should be on them’ - 6 months later it had risen to 54. After I came off them for other side effects my BS returned to normal where it has stayed for approx 8 years. I used to have the ‘you should be on statins’ conversation at every check up mbut when I saw a different GP in the practice he was surprised at the effect they had and has now annotated my notes with ‘statin intolerant’ as we don’t want to risk it happening again.
I’m n over a decade of being type 2 and on various meds I have never been offered statins. It’s interesting how different we all get treated

personally if offered I’d have refused. I don’t see an advantage in taking meds when my BP and cholesterol readings have always been perfect
 

Daibell

Master
Messages
12,642
Type of diabetes
LADA
Treatment type
Insulin
I was prescribed a statin when diagnosed with an hba1c of 48 after being told by my DN that ‘all diabetics should be on them’ - 6 months later it had risen to 54. After I came off them for other side effects my BS returned to normal where it has stayed for approx 8 years. I used to have the ‘you should be on statins’ conversation at every check up mbut when I saw a different GP in the practice he was surprised at the effect they had and has now annotated my notes with ‘statin intolerant’ as we don’t want to risk it happening again.
The 2nd GP should have known that Statins increase blood sugar. It's common knowledge but not in the NHS.
 

aard

Well-Known Member
Messages
141
I am constantly pushed statins due to diabetes. This is because also have high cholestrial/bp. Their program shows diabetics have high risk of dying . Maybe you have other conditions and that is why they are being pushed to you?

Personally after doing a lot of research I wont take statins like other posters. Suggest you do some research before making a decision, it can be very enlightening.
 

Daphne917

Well-Known Member
Messages
3,320
Type of diabetes
Type 2 (in remission!)
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The 2nd GP should have known that Statins increase blood sugar. It's common knowledge but not in the NHS.
It was the DN who prescribed them and when I mentioned there was a correlation between increased BS and statins I was told not to believe all I read in the Daily Mail - her face was a picture when I told her I’d read it from the drug manufacturers own website! One of the GPs was happy for me to come off them and it was the most recent GP I saw who annotated my notes after he scrolled back 8 years to my last diabetic Hba1c and saw the graph showing my ‘spike’!
 

Sandy-55

Active Member
Messages
43
Hi, I am newly diagnosed Type 2. At my appointment with the diabetic nurse I was told my level was 49 and they don't prescribe diabetic medication until your reading is 55. However she prescribed a statin. Having read up about statins I find that they raise your blood sugar level. Can anyone explain the sense in that.
Me too.. when I was diagnosed I was level 49 too the nurse and the doctor both said to go on statins it would help me .. I’m presuming I can drop these statins anytime if I wanted too
 

bulkbiker

BANNED
Messages
19,576
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
Me too.. when I was diagnosed I was level 49 too the nurse and the doctor both said to go on statins it would help me .. I’m presuming I can drop these statins anytime if I wanted too
As with anything it is entirely up to you what goes into your body. The doc is there to give advice not orders (or at least that used to hold true).
Did anyone explain why they put you on statins?
 

MikeZ

Well-Known Member
Messages
122
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
Diet only
I'm in the camp of refusing statins. Without going into the complete history, I am convinced that my initial diagnosis of Type 2 was at least partially, if not largely, due to being put on Lipitor. I quit the Lipitor after 3 months and have not had an A1C above 6.5 since. I'm typically in the 6.0 range. Because I also had a change of lifestyle when initially diagnosed, I cannot say for sure how much the statin had to do with the onset, nor can I know how much getting rid of the statin had to do with my subsequent recovery. What I can say is that I am not convinced that cholesterol readings are being interpreted correctly when it comes to overall health and that statins might be good at improving your readings while not necessarily improving your health. JMO.
 

Sandy-55

Active Member
Messages
43
As with anything it is entirely up to you what goes into your body. The doc is there to give advice not orders (or at least that used to hold true).
Did anyone explain why they put you on statins?
Only that it would keep my cholesterol levels down and that I would be on it for life
 

LaoDan

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Messages
993
Type of diabetes
Type 2
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Diet only
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The term “new normal “
Imho, I don’t think statins are the greatest idea for someone like me, who’s trying to beat this via exercise and diet. From what I understand, one of the side effects is the potential to damage muscle cells, whereas, I’m trying to build muscle.

I’m sure there are people who would benefit, I’d expect my doctor to give me a good reason. Then maybe, but only after all other options have been tried.
 

bulkbiker

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19,576
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Only that it would keep my cholesterol levels down and that I would be on it for life

Big assumption that "lowering cholesterol" is in any way beneficial..

Also big assumption that cholesterol is not dynamic in a similar way to blood glucose.

Even bigger assumption that our body can't regulate what it produces assuming species appropriate diet.

Up to you what you put in your body.
 

ianf0ster

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My Ratios ( HDL to total Cholesterol and HDL to Triglycerides) both improved on a Low Carb way of eating, despite my LDL going higher. The GP eventually agreed with me to drop the Statins.

Some current medical thought is that my ratios signify me having healthier (light fluffy) LDL rather than the nasty glycated /oxidised LDL I had before.
 

NicoleC1971

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3,451
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No one should take statins just because they have diabetes. Any GP or nurse who does that is being irresponsible without doing lipids tests. If you lipids results show your HDL, LDL, Trigs etc ratios are not good then it's worth considering taking the minimum dose that brings them in line. Statins are not a diabetes med and can be harmful for some people.
I agree with your main point re pre diabetics or diabetics not automatically but there will be a clinical justification such as raised LDl which a statin will lower. The argument is about whether that will then lower her risk of CVD. The only way I know to get bettr trig/hdl levels is to reduce insulin resistance via diet.
It is frustrating that statins seem to be handed out like smarties particularly to women who benefit less from them yet are at greater risk of getting worse diabetes as a side effect. Tipping into diabetes is the biggest risk here not the marker of that (High LDL and low HDL + high trigs).
 

coby

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Nope ... but your surgery will get extra money if they have prescribed them to you...can you believe that?

Edit to add this article

https://www.patrickholford.com/advice/how-gps-are-paid-to-prescribe-ineffective-drugs
Bulkbiker, I must have had a good GP. She told me I needed Statins and I politely refused them, so she then wrote down an alternative for me to go and buy myself, saying they appeared to be good. They are Plant Sterols 800mg each tablet (3 per day) They got my cholesterol down from 7.5 to 5, but slowly.