Do you take statins? Do you know why?

[midnightvelvet]

Hi everyone, I picked up on this thread because it mentioned statins and I have to tell you that I took them for many years to no effect. Two years ago, I was asked if I wanted to take part in a trial with a fairly new drug which was being carried out at my local hospital. It's probably also being trialled elsewhere. It's called inCliseran which is taken 6 monthly via injection into the stomach. My very first shot took my cholesterol down to 2.68, the lowest it had ever been and for someone who is notoriously hard to medicate, that is amazing! I am also type two diabetic with difficulty in controlling my BM's and I am now on a drug called Trulicity - again, magical results! I would definitely speak to my GP about it - that is, you speak to your GP LOL. Good luck

 

[teresa D C]

I'm a newly diagnosed type 2 and my GP has suggested I start on statins. I have had hypertension for best part of 40 years and have been on numerous meds over the years. Do I really need statins if I'm already taking BP meds. I speak to Pharmacist at the surgery next Tuesday

 

[Mozzermead]

Hi I haven’t been on the diabetic site for ages but this question made me me want to reply. I’m type 2 and I realise the question was aimed at type 1 ! But I was told the same thing that diabetics were being advised by GPs that they should be on statins. I refused but GPs at my surgery continued to keep on about it so I said I’d try them.
after about a month I started to get really bad aches in my arms, hips, neck shoulders. I went to my GP about another problem and happened to mention all my pains upper arms were the worst. She got me to have a blood test.
a few days later I had a text to say stop the statins immediately as my body wasn’t tolerating them and I wouldn’t be able to take them again. I stopped immediately pains still there and worse especially trying to take clothes over my head when lifting my arms Getting dressed and undressed. It turned out I now had Polymyalgia and was put on steroids and all the pills that go with them to protect stomach and bones. I’m still on them all 9 months later and hate all these pills. I,feel sure the statins caused all this and wish I had stuck to my decision of NO statins and hadn’t let the GPs persuade me to go on them.

 

[HARWELL]

I cannot believe all this negativity about statins. I have been on them for 24 years and have had no side effects. Better still I have not had a heart attack or stroke. It is a no-brainer to take them

 

[Pajero1us]

Statins do not thin blood. Different medication of blood thinners do that, for example Edoxaban.

Yes, Statins lower cholesterol.

So so do berries like Blueberries, Arona (Choke Berry), Stains impair some other med

 

[CJ74]

It’s not about changing the diet, though that would help enormously obviously. It is to do with the actual differences of the disease. The fact that a type 1s pancreas has stopped working probably, and we manage it artificially. Don’t ask me the ins and outs it’s all too scientific for my brain. I have tried diet only and still am pretty low carb. My cholesterol is still going up. Every year for 10 years. It wasn’t a problem before diabetes. It may also not be an issue for other type 1s but for many it will be and at the end of the day I was losing heart. At nearly 65 I am now in the danger zone for strokes especially.

Insulin promotes the production of LDL cholesterol so a type 1, on a standard recommended diet with carbs, will need more insulin than a non diabetic. Higher insulin intake puts you at higher risk of high bad cholesterol. Eating LCHF will reduce the amount of insulin required and so, reduce bad cholesterol levels

 

[becca59]

Insulin promotes the production of LDL cholesterol so a type 1, on a standard recommended diet with carbs, will need more insulin than a non diabetic. Higher insulin intake puts you at higher risk of high bad cholesterol. Eating LCHF will reduce the amount of insulin required and so, reduce bad cholesterol levels

I am on very low levels of insulin actually. Around 20 units daily including basal. And I definitely do not eat the recommended standard diet. But I cannot avoid the insulin I have to take.

 

[IanA123]

My GP keeps trying to push Statin on me, but I have always refused. The reason is that there are some very negative side effects that many people get including memory loss, tiredness, nausea and it also raises blood sugar which is not great for diabetics.

There is a good film which explains some of the downsides of Statins - Statin Nation (also Statin Nation 2)

O jave had 2 different types of stating pushed o to me, 1st made me nautious, and I ended up with bruising all over. Have binned them and gp is aware I will not be having anymore.

 

[etmsreec]

I have been offered statins by my GP and felt that I was being bullied into taking them by my old diabetes consultant (I said I would think about it, but the letter he wrote said that I had agreed to take them being the final straw). As yet, I have consistently refused as my cholesterol and lipid levels are fine according to hospital tests.

 

[CheeseSeaker]

Do I really need statins if I'm already taking BP meds. I speak to Pharmacist at the surgery next Tuesday

The Statins and BP meds are different things.

BP meds are needed is where your blood pressure is outside of normal range, and drop your BP.

Statins reduce the cholesterol in your blood, which should reduce the chance of a heart attack or stroke - Statins wont affect your BP, and BP wont affect your cholesterol.

Consider Statins separately from your BP meds (I'm on both btw)

 

[Fern Hopper]

I have taken statins for years with no ill effects at all. There's not a lot of creditable research suggesting much in the way of side effects.
Statins have become a bit like the MMR jab.

 

[LPB]

I cannot believe all this negativity about statins. I have been on them for 24 years and have had no side effects. Better still I have not had a heart attack or stroke. It is a no-brainer to take them

Hi - is it possible that what has been diagnosed as your T2 has been caused by the long-term use of statins? There is credible peer reviewed and published research saying that for some people, statins, Lipitor in particular, cause an increase in blood sugar that is not related to diabetes at all.

 

[CottonCutiePies]

I've been on atorvastatin since 2019 when just after 50 I had my 3rd heart attack. My 1st 2 were in 2007, whereby I was put on statins that gave me leg pains so was put on ezetimebe which works like a statin but isn't one. They said initially that because I had low blood pressure and cholesterol it saved my life. Over a period of years I slowly came off all my heart meds except for 75mg aspirin to thin my blood.
In 2019 and 10 days after my 50th I had a 3rd heart attack. I was told after the angiography that it was like my other 2 which was caused by my diabetes. I was put back on all the heart tablets along with atorvastatin, one that hadn't previously been tried. I'm on the highest dose. Recently my nurse practitioner told me that my cholesterol was raised and that I needed to go on another tablet along with atorvastating. I told them that I didn't know why or how my cholesterol was high since I use semi skimmed milk and bertolli spread and follow a fairly healthy diet. Anyway he wrote to the hospital for advice, whereby they basically told them not to recommend any other cholesterol lowering pills as mine were fine.
The nurse practitioner didn't ask if I fasted, which I didn't because the don't do fasting lipids anymore. When I spoke to my diabetes doctor he said there could be many reason why your cholesterol could rise for example alcohol the night before the test also having just eaten before the blood test. The night before I drank alcohol and had breakfast before the blood test.
Offering statins to the over 50s seem to be the norm these days especially if you have diabetes or have a family history of heart attacks, which more recently I've found that several ancestors on both of my maternal sides had heart related deaths. Aside from my nan who was 2 years in with type 2 and me type 1, the others were previously healthy. My mum also had a heart attack in February 2019. So makes me order if my diabetes was the real cause or genetics.

 

[stfluffybrain]

It’s not about changing the diet, though that would help enormously obviously. It is to do with the actual differences of the disease. The fact that a type 1s pancreas has stopped working probably, and we manage it artificially. Don’t ask me the ins and outs it’s all too scientific for my brain. I have tried diet only and still am pretty low carb. My cholesterol is still going up. Every year for 10 years. It wasn’t a problem before diabetes. It may also not be an issue for other type 1s but for many it will be and at the end of the day I was losing heart. At nearly 65 I am now in the danger zone for strokes especially.

How is your thyroid? They used to use cholesterol going higher as a marker for thyroid levels, you could be hypo. Watched the video of Dr Roy of the Newcastle diet for diabetes, I seem to remember him not being overly enthusiastic a about statins, but who knows?

 

[stfluffybrain]

I get offered them every year and have always decline and will continue to do so. I value my brain (I think someone before me has said the same.
It occurred to me only the other day that heart attacks were almost unheard of until President Eisenhower had one in the 50s. This was blamed on his saturated fat intake although his chain smoking and love of fast food was ignored. Our great grandparents and grandparents consumed lard, butter and cream so what’s recently happened? Vegetable oil and processed food.
If you have the time what this YouTube video with Dr Paul Mason. I love his opinions (probably because they match mine lol!)

Such a cheery young man, so well informed and his presentation provided sources some great research. Thanks for posting.

 

[ElenaP]

...... really bad aches in my arms, hips, neck shoulders. It turned out I now had Polymyalgia and was put on steroids ..... still on them all 9 months later

I hope that you will improve soon. A close friend of mine had similar symptoms and had bloods taken. Then she was told that she had a very rare condition (myositis) caused by statins. The GP said that it is rare to get it from statins. In March 2023 she was started on 60mg of steroids but the dose has been reduced gradually. Now she is on 3mg of steroids and is feeling much better.

 

[holdem]

Just caught up with the video. Quite alarming.

 

[KennyA]

There is quite a lot of research in the last ten years plus, casting some doubt on the cholesterol hypothesis. In particular, these studies are showing clearly that low cholesterol increases mortality. As an example, for my age group, the Korean reseach indicates that lowest mortality is associated with a total cholesterol level of c. 190 to 250 mg/dl or 4.9 to 6.5 mmol/l.

I'd advise having a read and making an informed decision.

Korean research on 12.8 million people:

Total cholesterol and all-cause mortality by sex and age: a prospective cohort study among 12.8 million adults - Scientific Reports

It is unclear whether associations between total cholesterol (TC) levels and all-cause mortality and the optimal TC ranges for lowest mortality vary by sex and age. 12,815,006 Korean adults underwent routine health examinations during 2001–2004, and were followed until 2013. During follow-up...

www.nature.com

Norwegian research on 68,000 people:

Is the use of cholesterol in mortality risk algorithms in clinical guidelines valid? Ten years prospective data from the Norwegian HUNT 2 study - PMC

Many clinical guidelines for cardiovascular disease (CVD) prevention contain risk estimation charts/calculators. These have shown a tendency to overestimate risk, which indicates that there might be theoretical flaws in the algorithms. Total ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

A re-evaulation in the BMJ of some of the original work on cholesterol

Re-evaluation of the traditional diet-heart hypothesis: analysis of recovered data from Minnesota Coronary Experiment (1968-73)

Objective To examine the traditional diet-heart hypothesis through recovery and analysis of previously unpublished data from the Minnesota Coronary Experiment (MCE) and to put findings in the context of existing diet-heart randomized controlled trials through a systematic review and...

www.bmj.com

There are more references in each of these papers.

 

[Jon Mors]

I'm late to this topic. I had some bad stats for cholesterol and arterial inflammation so the doctor tried pushing them on me. I declined. After the covid episode my trust in doctors is severely impaired.

I'm middle aged but relatively fit. I have since started taking nattokinase daily, and for what it's worth (possibly not much) I feel better. We'll see what my test results say next time I have a check up.

The evidence base for statins improving health directly is poor. The reason they are recommended is that they do lower cholesterol, which is associated with lower risk of heart attacks and strokes. So how can 1+1 not equal 2? Could be myriad reasons, including side effects offsetting the benefits.

I'm a parent of a diabetic and not diabetic myself, so please do your own research!