statins

[Sarah Jane]

This is the first time I've visited the site and I've discovered that other people have problems with statins, not just me. I take plant sterol capsules and I find they keep my cholesterol down to about 5.2.
(Without taking anything, it used to be around 5.8 usually.)Has anybody got any other ideas (apart from oat bran, fish oil, almonds, apples and exercise) for reducing cholesterol, without statins?
How important are statins, in fact? Has anyone lived for years as a diabetic without statins and without any problems arising from cholesterol levels?

 

[IanD]

Those ideas are good & healthy. For most people, 5.2 is OK. You need to know your HDL/LDL ratio to be sure.

I've given up on Chol reducing drugs due to side effects - muscle pain. My life & activity level is satisfactory, whereas statins were crippling. My chol is about 5.0.

If you have a heart problem, then there would be a good reason for cholesterol control. You are wise to be trying control by diet.

 

[fergus]

I agree with Sarahq.

Statins are a scandal waiting to happen. There's little evidence that cholesterol levels are linked to heart disease risk, and emerging evidence that lower levels increase the risk of other diseases such as a variety of cancers.

Perhaps the largest study into the impact of cholesterol levels on health and longevity took place amongst a large group (and I mean thousands) of female Parisians. It found that those with the highest cholesterol levels not only had fewer heart attacks, but lived longer healthier lives into the bargain. As Dennis has said before, the whole cholesterol myth began many years ago, based upon experimental research on rabbits. This is pretty irrelevant as far as humans are concerned because their cholesterol metabolism is so different from ours. Cholesterol levels in humans are largely regulated by the liver, and are little influenced by the ingestion of dietary cholesterol. The trouble is, levels are very easy and inexpensive to measure, which is why doctors are happy to measure them, despite the fact that it tells them very little.

Oh, and they do get paid for prescribing statins too, which may have something to do with it.

All the best,

fergus

 

[Sarah Jane]

Thank you. That's all useful to know.

 

[johnoswaldallan]

Hi Everybody
I was put on statins some 4-5 years ago before I was aware of the “cholesterol myth” I took one tablet (can’t remember the name) at bedtime. I started to develop daily migraine type headaches. I mentioned this to my GP who gave me some painkillers that were not far short of a class A drug. They worked of course because as soon as I took one I went in to what can only be described as a light to moderate coma. I then became very forgetful i.e. I would start to drive somewhere and then forget where I was going (these episodes where only momentarily but very disturbing) After convincing myself that I was in the early stages of Alzheimer’s my wife read up on the tablets (I think they were Simvastatin) Within three days off the wretched things I was back to normal. I now suspect this idea to get everyone over the age of 5 ½ on statins is a ploy by the pharmaceutical companies to swell their already obscene profits. Or is that just me being cynical?

Regards
John

 

[Dennis]

Hi John,

You comment on forgetfulness reminded me of one of the great Dave Allen's gems where he found himself halfway up the stairs and not able to remember what he was going for. So he sat down to think about it - but no luck. After a few minutes, ok - I give up. Now was I going upstairs or downstairs!

 

[HOT FUZZ]

this is a link to a Dave Allen sketch on youtube(you'll need flashplayer)
the idea of coffins racing cracks me up every time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4kLTbvjqF6Y

 

[sixfoot]

John my story is the same, an arbitrary decision to put me on Simvastatin but after a while i was getting muscle pains so stopped taking. i went on internet to have a look see and lo and behold similar stories abound. so next time i see the GP i tell him so. Oh he says well it does happen well change it now am on Lipitor and had no probs so far.

 

[Linda59]

Just been to doctors today and after all I've read about the statins decided to ask to come off them, she wasn't too keen at first as I have heart problem, but when I said could I have a month off them to see how it went she seemed to mellow and said if I was happier doing that fine but if it was them causing muscle problems they would give me something else, what else could they give me and any other symptoms to look out for, thanks :?

 

[bluebird]

Similar story. I told the doctor that I had stopped taking Simvistatin and she wasn't too pleased. I had been having severe muscle pain and found it difficult to even get out of bed. The muscle ache has not completely gone (after 8 weeks since last taking tablets) but I am convinced it was the Simvistatin. See what she has to say next visit.

Val

 

[MoanaMarie]

Geeeeeez.

I've just joined, and scrolled through the discussions. We are all taking too many allopathic (doctors' ) medicines!!!

Leave the statins. Cholesterol is not important. Half of all people who die from heart attacks do NOT have high cholesterol. What does that tell you???

If diabetic, rather use natural supplements. You can now find excellent cinnamon capsules on the market. In South Africa, where I live, the best is called Diabecinn.

When you have blood tests done, rather ask whether they can test for homocysteine, as too much of this is a killer. I can't remember the numbers, but I think it should be below 9 or 8.

Take a high-potency Vit B Complex capsule. There is also a (rather large!) tablet on the market under the name "Manna". which I've just started taking and which is supposed to help to even out the glucose in food so there is less of a peak. (Not sure of the resuls yet as I don't test all the time).

An excellent product -- Google for it -- is Cellfood. These drops taken in filtered water slowly, slowly seem to try and normalise things in the body, and is certainly responsible for bringing down my cholesterol down (with NO dietary changes) to almost normal. (I'm not very worried about cholesterol anyway). I refuse to follow a low-fat diet. Low-fat-anything is more loaded with carbs. I eat my food in as natural a form as it comes. Fullfat milk, meat with fat, roast chicken, olive oil for frying, etc.

As I was only diagnosed with a mild case of diabetes in January, and have forgotten to take Cellfood for a while, I can't tell you whether it works for diabetes too, but it should. (25 drops a day is the average dose).

 

[fergus]

Leave the statins. Cholesterol is not important. Half of all people who die from heart attacks do NOT have high cholesterol. What does that tell you???

I agree. Cholesterol levels tell us little, if anything, about heart disease risk. They're great for scaring the bejeesus out of people and selling statins though.

All the best,

fergus

 

[stockcar19]

You have been told by the NHS that you need statins therfore you must take them !!!

Get real, welcome to the NHS sponsored by whichever drug company is giving the biggest donation / rebate on sales (sorry prescription) at any particular time depending upon what type of investigation they are paying for out of their marketing budgets.

Personally I won't take them, but you have to make you own mind up.

I could post a lot more on the subject now that i no longer suffer from the muscular pain in my upper arms which stopped when I threw the statins in the dustbin.

 

[johnoswaldallan]

Hello Everybody

Stockcar you are so right. It really would appear that the pharmaceutical companies have a lot to answer for, there is now overwhelming evidence that cholesterol levels have little or no relationship to heart disease. The pharmaceutical companies of course perpetuate this myth and they blatantly suppress any factual evidence that satins are positively harmful and that cholesterol and heart disease are not really linked.
They also try and convince us that normal child hood illness (which helped generations of children build up their immune system) are now dangerous and that children need to be injected with their very suspect potions even if the vaccines can kill off more children than the disease it is supposed to prevent. The over use of antibiotics is now producing strains of bacteria that have become resistant to antibiotics.
They tell us that we need an influenza injection every winter even though the benefits are extremely dubious. In fact it is really impossible to gauge any benefits at all from having the “flue jab”. The real benefit, of course is not to the patient but to their vast profits.

A good example of how the system works is the treatment of stomach ulcers. Many years ago ulcers were treated either by surgery or by feeding barbiturates to the patients and keeping them in a near state of coma. It didn’t in any way prove effective but nevertheless that was how they did it. Then came a long Tagamet, which was very effective in treating the symptoms of stomach ulcers. I believe that it was in the late 90’s that an Australian doctor, Barry Marshall discovered that stomach ulcers were caused by the H pylori bacteria and that most cases of stomach ulcers could be treated effectively and cheaply with one course of antibiotics .Until then it had been assumed that nothing could live in the stomach because of the high concentration of hydrochloric acid. Of course the pharmaceutical companies did every thing they could to discredit this guy as at that time Tagamet was still under licence and was making a lot of money. It was many years before his findings were finaly accepted and put into practice. I do take a somewhat cynical view of modern medicine but nevertheless have to admit that I possibly would not be here without it. I do believe that as an individual I should take the responsibility for looking into every aspect of medical treatments offered to me and then try and make informed decisions.

Regards

John

 

[stockcar19]

Hi John

Now please don't get me started on the flu jab.Many years after persuading my mother that as she was getting on in years she should have the flu jab which in hindsight and with better understanding and judgement nowdays , I would never advise anyone else to have "the jab".Within days she contracted flu which finally led her to become so weak that I discovered her on the bathroom floor.She had had a heart attack during the night and that was that.It was bad enough to live with the knowledge that I had advised her to have the flu jab, but when you learn in years to come about the antics of the pharmaceutical companies who run the NHS it makes your blood boil.
It really is a scandal that needs exposing but I suppose they are not alone,look at the supermarkets and fuel companies for instance.I'm in business but hope that we have higher morals than some others who don't seem to care where the next pound comes from or whose blood is on the dollar bill.