Statins: Dangerous and a waste of time and money

A forum to discuss personal experiences and share information on statins and other cholesterol lowering drugs.

Statins: Dangerous and a waste of time and money

Postby cjbrooksjc » Thu Jan 12, 2017 4:28 pm

Are Statins a waste of time and money?

Millions are being misled about the pros and cons of statin drugs, according to a panel of experts who gathered recently to discuss the controversial class of the massively prescribed cholesterol-lowering drugs.
Doctors from the United States, France, England, and Ireland questioned the theory that lowering LDL (so-called “bad” cholesterol) actually cuts heart disease.
They also wrote in the Prescriber medical journal, where their theories were published, that the side effects of statins used to lower cholesterol, may be far more common and debilitating than major studies suggest.
While most cardiologists today are quick to prescribe cholesterol-lowering drugs to our aging and increasingly obese population, they are potentially mistaken in thinking that statins are a cheap, safe, and effective way of preventing heart attacks said the group of doctors.
London cardiologist Dr. Aseem Malhorta, for example, questions whether these medications are even as effective as thought, claiming that the “cholesterol con” has led to “overmedication of millions.”
Harvard Medical School’s Dr. John Abramson cited earlier research that found no link between high LDL cholesterol levels and heart deaths in those over 60.
“A lack of association between LDL cholesterol and cardiovascular disease in those over 60 from our recent systemic review suggests the conventional cholesterol hypothesis is flawed,” wrote Abramson in the article, entitled “The Great Cholesterol Con.”
Richard Thompson, the Queen’s former personal physician asked this telling question: “For hundreds of years physicians have clung to outdated and ineffective treatments. Could statins be now the latest star to fall? Have patients been misled over them for many years?”
Dr. Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., co-author of “The Great Cholesterol Myth” with renowned cardiologist Dr. Stephen Sinatra, tells Newsmax Health that “the new article is a wonderful development, but not wholly unexpected.”
“Our book, ‘The Great Cholesterol Myth,’ references dozens of and dozens of studies that not only cast doubt on the cholesterol theory but in some cases totally refutes the notion that cholesterol causes heart disease,” he says.
“We list several peer-reviewed studies that show more than half the people admitted to hospitals for cardiovascular disease have normal cholesterol. Not only doesn’t cholesterol cause heart disease, it is a lousy predictor of it!”
Bowden, appearing on The Doctor Oz Show, said that “trying to lower the risk of heart disease by lowering cholesterol is like trying to lower the risk of obesity by taking the lettuce off your Big Mac.”
He went on to say that this new theory was actually voiced long ago by researcher Dr. George Mann, one of the principal investigators of the long-running Framingham study of heart disease.
Mann said that the notion of cholesterol causing heart disease was “the biggest scam ever perpetuated on the American public.”
Another excellent article, says Bowden, published in the journal Nutrition pointed out the discrepancy between scientific literature and dietary advice. The authors found that the “results and conclusions linking saturated fat to cardiovascular disease from leading advisory committees do not reflect the available scientific data.”
Finally there is the issue of the $34 billion statin drug industry and the overmedication of the public in general. Dr. John Abramson of Harvard Medical School has been an outspoken opponent of the overuse of ineffective drugs and wrote a book called “Overdosed America” describing the abuse and overuse of statins.
Statin drugs have multiple serious side effects from memory loss to fatigue to loss of energy and libido. Others may suffer serious muscle pain, says Bowden.
Last April, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) reported that between 5 percent and 20 percent of all people taking stains stopped because of muscle pain.
And these figures may be just the tip of the iceberg. Bowden refers to a telling study by Dr. Beatrice Golumb, from the University of California-San Diego, in which she reveals that more than 65 percent of doctors do not report statin side effects because they don’t believe their patients.
“The average patient comes in and says ‘Doc, ever since you gave me this Lipitor I’ve been forgetting things right and left,’ ” says Bowden. “And the doctor replies, ‘Mr. Jones, that’s just mild cognitive impairment that comes with old age, nothing to worry about and definitely not coming from the statin drug.’ ”
Despite the evidence that statins don’t save lives, they are routinely prescribed even for low-risk patients.
“Doctors prescribe them randomly for anyone with a so-called elevated cholesterol level,” says Bowden. “Interestingly, the Framingham study revealed that people with the highest cholesterol levels actually lived the longest.
“And the claim from drug companies that statins save lives usually does not hold up upon close examination. You may see a slight reduction in heart attacks but your will see a corresponding increase in cancer and diabetes.”
In fact a 2013 Harvard study calculated that for every low risk patient who takes statins for five years, only one major heart event will be prevented.
Ultimately experts say that revamping one’s diet and lifestyle to reduce or eliminate processed foods and sugar and exercising more should be the main focus for heart disease prevention.
But as long as the statin industry keeps raking in big bucks, says Bowden, the powers that be will turn a deaf ear and blind eye to the actual facts.
“As the great American writer Upton Sinclair once said: ‘It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends on his not understanding it.”
cjbrooksjc
 
Posts: 1188
Joined: Wed Dec 13, 2006 11:28 am
Location: Texas

Re: Statins: Dangerous and a waste of time and money

Postby Floydknobsclarkcount » Sun Jan 22, 2017 9:28 pm

You know they always say follow the money!!! How much are the phamaceutical companies paying Drs. to dole out this poison. I thought the Dr took an oath to save people's lives not destroy them . :x

We believe that after my husband developed ALL the symptoms described in this forum after using Lipitor (atorvastatin) for 1 + yrs. He developed muscle spasms during the night that woke him with severe pain. He began to have trouble getting on and off our farm tractor, then difficulty getting out of chairs. He has tingling, burning feet and pain all the way up to and including his ankles. :evil: Now he's developing problems in his hands where he has limited strength and difficulty making a fist or even holding a magazine and turning pages. He has very little appetite and sometimes the talk of food makes him nauseous.
He began taking Ubiquinol, L-carnitine, tumeric-cumerin. So far nothing has changed and he's been on this regimen about 3 weeks.
We have been to the family Dr. who said he's never seen this before. Are presently going to a Neurologist who has ordered Lidocaine 5% ointment to rub into his feet (no help there). physical therpy, which the therapist said he can't do anything for his lower legs or feet. Only his lower back and thighs, which are not causing him pain. She also ordered an MRI which reported some bulging of a couple of lumbar discs. She also ordered every blood test possible and the only thing that came back elevated (besides his cholesterols and triglycerides) was the CRP which came back as "inflammed / unspecific". She said he should talk to her at his next visit in another week from now and he should start to take Cymbalta.

Now there's a good one!! The side effects on that med are as bad or worse than the lipitor.
Can't take another drug that has side effects especially when we read that to stop taking the drug you have to open the capsule, count the beads and reduce the beads by 1%. On withdrawl your side effects can come back worse than you originally experienced.

I've read a lot of the comments on this site with a lot of ideas and different herbs or vitamins. We need to know what is the best regimen of limited pills because it becomes ominous with all the pills everyone on this site suggests. He's just looking for relief from the pain. Neurologist said she doesn't prescribe pain pills.
Is there any system that has proven effective for a number of people? :?

Linda
Floydknobsclarkcount
 
Posts: 3
Joined: Thu Dec 22, 2016 8:18 pm
Location: Pennsylvania

Re: Statins: Dangerous and a waste of time and money

Postby Allen1 » Fri Jun 30, 2017 12:54 pm

Hi there Brooks,
that was a very good read and I hope many more people will take a look and add their comments to it. I don't come here very often as most of my energy and time is used in walking my daughters dog, the little blighter wears me out but it keeps me moving or I would just sit all day and do very little. I hope you are in reasonably good health (apart from what this poison has already done), take care and thanks for posting the above


Hi there Linda,

I'm pleased to see your husband is taking Ubiquinol and L-carnitine. They do help but it takes time and different people react to there use and dosage amounts but if you can keep him on them then it should help to ease some of the problems. I am not a medic but I did use those 2 products and the symptoms slowly eased off although years later, my memory still has not returned to where it should be.

It may take years to actually realise the improvement in his health as it did for myself, but others have had quicker improvements so hopefully he may be one of them. Generally for me it was one thing improving and something else cropping up, but slowly everything eased off and was more manageable.

Things will improve and the pain will ease and hopefully his strength will improve as it did for me, a lot of the improvements are so slow that you don't realise that they have happened till you realise that you can do things today that you couldn't do 6 months ago.

I wish you all the very best with your husbands recovery and I wish it is speedier than I made out :wink:

All the very best,
Allen,
Allen1
 
Posts: 457
Joined: Fri Sep 07, 2007 11:55 am
Location: England

Re: Statins: Dangerous and a waste of time and money

Postby cjbrooksjc » Sun Jul 02, 2017 12:53 pm

Linda and Allen,

First let me say I am using Google here which provides no spellcheck.

Hello, Allen. Some days are reasonably good, but I always feel the spectre of Statins pinching nerves, cramping msucles, and generlly preventing me from feeling "normal". I am still in the fight however. I, like you, am a seldom visitor to the site now. You are welcome to the info, and I am happy you found it informative. Goods to 'hear' from you.

I am posting a link that has even more information; you may find it useful. Here is a scrap from the link: :arrow:
Cholesterol is an anti¬oxidant, a repair and healing molecule. The body produces more of it in response to stress and tissue damage, when repair and healing are needed. Remove the causes of the body’s distress, like inflammation and oxidation, and you lower cholesterol. It turned out that blaming cholesterol for heart disease makes as much sense as blaming the Red Cross for the disasters to which it responds.

Linda, I have to say there are many of single or combnination supplemental meds on the market that have their own discipleship followings. I can't answer your question because the answer seems to differ with each person affected. It's best to peruse this site and make your own assessments as to which supplements are best. The one thing that seemed to make an initial difference was Magnesium injections, but that only made a small (though noticible) improvement. I now take mag supplements (capsules) daily. Others swear by ALC (Acetyl L-Carnitine). It's (sadly) up to the poatient to find the best solution. It is thought the mitochondria are the most damaged element of the body. Mitochoondria - 1, provide 98% of the body's energy; 2, take out the trash created by energy production, and 3, maintain water balance in the cell. Anything that makes those jobs easier seems to fall in the 'beneficial' category and should be considered. DRINK LOTS OF WATER. IT HELPS!! I'm afraid that's the best I can do. Note: I now visit this site once every few months, so don't be offended if I don't respond to you immediately.

Best,
Brooks
cjbrooksjc
 
Posts: 1188
Joined: Wed Dec 13, 2006 11:28 am
Location: Texas


Return to Statins and other Cholesterol Reducing Drugs

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 9 guests

cron