Ok..so back to Dr after being on Zocor for 5 months in 2005..then put on Lipitor..but was too scared to try it...(so just told the doc it was the same as Zocor)..now she wants me to try Zetia..says it is NOT a statin..but to me it looks like the side effects are the same...quite frankly..I am also scared to take this one..(had major low back pain..felt like an old woman at 48...could hardly tie my shoes & let's not even talk about how much it hurt to sneeze..)
Can someone tell me what this drug is?
Total 241, LDL 171, HDL 61 (highest ever) and tri was like 60 or something..
It's totally a hereditary thing...
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Zetia..is it a Statin or not?
19 posts
• Page 1 of 1
Zetia..is it a Statin or not?
by gardenmaniac » Thu May 10, 2007 6:39 pm
- gardenmaniac
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by cjbrooksjc » Thu May 10, 2007 7:26 pm
Gardenmaniac: No ZETIA is not a Statin.
Why is Zetia prescribed?
Zetia is a new kind of cholesterol-lowering drug. The older cholesterol-lowering drugs called "statins" reduce cholesterol by interfering with its production in the body. Zetia acts by diminishing the absorption of dietary cholesterol through the intestines.
Zetia may be taken alone or with a statin drug. Because the two drugs fight cholesterol in different ways, the Zetia/statin combination has a greater impact than either drug alone.
Cholesterol--especially "bad" LDL cholesterol--promotes clogged arteries, increasing the risk of heart attack and stroke. "Good" HDL cholesterol helps to prevent clogged arteries. Zetia lowers the bad cholesterol and raises the good. It also lowers total cholesterol readings and reduces levels of triglycerides (fats in the blood).
Cholesterol-lowering drugs are typically prescribed for people who either have heart disease or are in danger of developing it. For people at high risk of heart disease, current guidelines call for considering drug therapy when LDL levels reach 130. For people at lower risk, the cut-off is 160. For those at little or no risk, it's 190.
There are still warnings similar to Statin drugs because Zetia also affects liver function.
Have you tried Vitamin C at all? I mean in the 3 grams a day range (one per meal)?
Copy and paste the following url into your browser - don't forget to remove the asterisk* *http://www.vitamincfoundation.org/statin.htm
Regards,
Brooks
Why is Zetia prescribed?
Zetia is a new kind of cholesterol-lowering drug. The older cholesterol-lowering drugs called "statins" reduce cholesterol by interfering with its production in the body. Zetia acts by diminishing the absorption of dietary cholesterol through the intestines.
Zetia may be taken alone or with a statin drug. Because the two drugs fight cholesterol in different ways, the Zetia/statin combination has a greater impact than either drug alone.
Cholesterol--especially "bad" LDL cholesterol--promotes clogged arteries, increasing the risk of heart attack and stroke. "Good" HDL cholesterol helps to prevent clogged arteries. Zetia lowers the bad cholesterol and raises the good. It also lowers total cholesterol readings and reduces levels of triglycerides (fats in the blood).
Cholesterol-lowering drugs are typically prescribed for people who either have heart disease or are in danger of developing it. For people at high risk of heart disease, current guidelines call for considering drug therapy when LDL levels reach 130. For people at lower risk, the cut-off is 160. For those at little or no risk, it's 190.
There are still warnings similar to Statin drugs because Zetia also affects liver function.
Have you tried Vitamin C at all? I mean in the 3 grams a day range (one per meal)?
Copy and paste the following url into your browser - don't forget to remove the asterisk* *http://www.vitamincfoundation.org/statin.htm
Regards,
Brooks
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by cjbrooksjc » Thu May 10, 2007 7:28 pm
gardenmaniac: I forgot to indicate that the info I included in my last was cut and pasted from another RX site and were not my words.
Brooks
Brooks
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by xrn » Fri May 11, 2007 12:22 am
gardenmaniac, you have asked about Zetia (Ezetimebe) and I have reproduced a small passage from a PubMed paper for you. It is a technical quote that will reward careful and repeated reading. (in other words, you need to analyse the words used and then give them their common meanings)
The drug, Zetia, is supposedly not a statin (could the pharmaceutical industry be worried about some determined and sustained bad press about statins by clinicians and have they attempted to take our minds off the term?) but is reported as lowering cholesterol by interfering with the absorbtion of cholesterol from the intestine. The wording in the first paragraph strongly suggests that its effects are not widely understood (or even understood at all) which is a huge warning sign. AVOID THIS DRUG LIKE YOU WOULD AVOID THE PLAGUE!
It is not yet clear, after decades of dedicated research, that lowering cholesterol is a good or worthwhile aim. Lower cholesterol has been linked to increased risk of death (among many other effects) think about that. There are many ignorant doctors who practise medicine by repeating what their colleagues say. They don't think about how they do their job but just do as they have been told and frequently... they have suspended all critical analysis.
The substance, Ezitimibe, has a very long half-life of some 20 hours in the body... that is the duration it it takes for the drug to reach half of its original concentration strength. My take on this particular aspect of Zetia is that if nature thought that it was a good thing to have this substance in my body in the first place... it would already be there because we all would have been born with it. I personally trust evolution to do what is best for the survival of the species. Treat your body as your personal temple and keep this junk outside of your body, where it very firmly belongs. Interfere with your own body biochemistry, at your peril.
The third paragraph discusses what 'appears' to be the principle medical benefit, that is a reduction in LDLc and that is followed by the pure alchemy inherent in the statement "There is also a reduction in the cholesterol content of chylomicrons, which *may* provide *some* reduction in the atherogenic *potential* of the plasma lipoprotein pool." BEWARE! Your chylomicron count is too high and the cash registers of the pharmaceutical industry are already ringing as your doctor prescribes this chylomicron lowering medication to you.
To read this sort of nonsense in a journal that purports to be about medical science, is a shocking indictment of the state of education among medics. The editor should have been fired for permitting such psuedo-scientific claptrap to grace the pages of a scientific journal.
Note the use of the phrase "atherogenic potential" It is complete nonsense... there is a huge amount of suggestion (speculation) and no actual evidential proof that cholesterol is atherogenic, after all... it is required by every cell in your body... a fact that this small monograph about the wonders of Zetia has failed to acknowledge. The proof that cholesterol is harmful has had researchers (read as drug companies) searching and claiming that they have found the 'truth' for decades. It still has not been shown to be the case.
The bottom line is the drug, Zetia, is yet more smoke and mirrors from the pharmaceutical industry. The drug has been used in combination with Simvastatin (Zocor) and goes under the trade name Vytorin. Read all about it on this very site here... http://www.spacedoc.net/vytorin_side_effects.htm
(you must remove the asterisk from the front of the following URL before pasting it into your web browser)
[quotation from PubMed 2003]
*http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12743640&dopt=Abstract
"Ezetimibe is the first of a new class of drugs that specifically reduces the intestinal absorption of cholesterol. The drug is absorbed into the intestinal epithelial cell and remains associated in great part with the apical cell membrane where it is believed to interfere with the putative sterol transporter system. This apparently prevents both free cholesterol and plant sterols (phytosterols) from being transported into the cell from the intestinal lumen.
The mechanism is very different from the reduction produced by phytosterol esters and phytostanol esters that have been documented previously as interfering with the micellar presentation of sterols to the cell surface. The drug is rapidly absorbed and glucuronidated in the intestinal cell before secretion into the blood. Ezetimibe is avidly taken up by the liver from the portal blood and excreted into the bile, resulting in low peripheral blood concentrations. The glucuronide conjugate is hydrolyzed and absorbed and is equally effective in inhibiting sterol absorption.
This enterohepatic recycling is responsible for a half-life in the body of more than 20 h. The principle medical benefit appears to be a reduction in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLc). There is also a reduction in the cholesterol content of chylomicrons, which may provide some reduction in the atherogenic potential of the plasma lipoprotein pool. Triglycerides fall moderately and a modest rise in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLc) has been consistently observed in groups of treated patients.
The maximum mean reduction of LDL cholesterol is approximately 20-25% in small studies at the maximal dose tested of 40 mg/day and the reduction is usually in the 16-20% range at the dosage of 10 mg/day. Most subsequent studies have been completed with the 10 mg/day dose. The medication is effective as a single daily dose due to its long residence time in the body. Combinations of ezetimibe with all available statins have been completed and demonstrate LDLc reductions of approximately 25% as additive effects to any statin dose alone.
There are also small additional increases in HDL (2-3%) and reductions in triglycerides (10-15%). Additive effects to statin therapy have also been documented in patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia. Reduction of plant sterols has been demonstrated in phytosterolemia, offering the first drug treatment for this rare inherited disease."
[PubMed abstract from Feb 2007] *http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=17253923
The second abstract discusses the rapid development of myopathy 16 days after adding ezitimebe to the patient' statin and resolved 12 days after removing it.
gardenmaniac, this short introduction to Zetia carries one take home message only... Don't do drugs... you know it makes sense.
Kind regards,
xrn
The drug, Zetia, is supposedly not a statin (could the pharmaceutical industry be worried about some determined and sustained bad press about statins by clinicians and have they attempted to take our minds off the term?) but is reported as lowering cholesterol by interfering with the absorbtion of cholesterol from the intestine. The wording in the first paragraph strongly suggests that its effects are not widely understood (or even understood at all) which is a huge warning sign. AVOID THIS DRUG LIKE YOU WOULD AVOID THE PLAGUE!
It is not yet clear, after decades of dedicated research, that lowering cholesterol is a good or worthwhile aim. Lower cholesterol has been linked to increased risk of death (among many other effects) think about that. There are many ignorant doctors who practise medicine by repeating what their colleagues say. They don't think about how they do their job but just do as they have been told and frequently... they have suspended all critical analysis.
The substance, Ezitimibe, has a very long half-life of some 20 hours in the body... that is the duration it it takes for the drug to reach half of its original concentration strength. My take on this particular aspect of Zetia is that if nature thought that it was a good thing to have this substance in my body in the first place... it would already be there because we all would have been born with it. I personally trust evolution to do what is best for the survival of the species. Treat your body as your personal temple and keep this junk outside of your body, where it very firmly belongs. Interfere with your own body biochemistry, at your peril.
The third paragraph discusses what 'appears' to be the principle medical benefit, that is a reduction in LDLc and that is followed by the pure alchemy inherent in the statement "There is also a reduction in the cholesterol content of chylomicrons, which *may* provide *some* reduction in the atherogenic *potential* of the plasma lipoprotein pool." BEWARE! Your chylomicron count is too high and the cash registers of the pharmaceutical industry are already ringing as your doctor prescribes this chylomicron lowering medication to you.
To read this sort of nonsense in a journal that purports to be about medical science, is a shocking indictment of the state of education among medics. The editor should have been fired for permitting such psuedo-scientific claptrap to grace the pages of a scientific journal.
Note the use of the phrase "atherogenic potential" It is complete nonsense... there is a huge amount of suggestion (speculation) and no actual evidential proof that cholesterol is atherogenic, after all... it is required by every cell in your body... a fact that this small monograph about the wonders of Zetia has failed to acknowledge. The proof that cholesterol is harmful has had researchers (read as drug companies) searching and claiming that they have found the 'truth' for decades. It still has not been shown to be the case.
The bottom line is the drug, Zetia, is yet more smoke and mirrors from the pharmaceutical industry. The drug has been used in combination with Simvastatin (Zocor) and goes under the trade name Vytorin. Read all about it on this very site here... http://www.spacedoc.net/vytorin_side_effects.htm
(you must remove the asterisk from the front of the following URL before pasting it into your web browser)
[quotation from PubMed 2003]
*http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12743640&dopt=Abstract
"Ezetimibe is the first of a new class of drugs that specifically reduces the intestinal absorption of cholesterol. The drug is absorbed into the intestinal epithelial cell and remains associated in great part with the apical cell membrane where it is believed to interfere with the putative sterol transporter system. This apparently prevents both free cholesterol and plant sterols (phytosterols) from being transported into the cell from the intestinal lumen.
The mechanism is very different from the reduction produced by phytosterol esters and phytostanol esters that have been documented previously as interfering with the micellar presentation of sterols to the cell surface. The drug is rapidly absorbed and glucuronidated in the intestinal cell before secretion into the blood. Ezetimibe is avidly taken up by the liver from the portal blood and excreted into the bile, resulting in low peripheral blood concentrations. The glucuronide conjugate is hydrolyzed and absorbed and is equally effective in inhibiting sterol absorption.
This enterohepatic recycling is responsible for a half-life in the body of more than 20 h. The principle medical benefit appears to be a reduction in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDLc). There is also a reduction in the cholesterol content of chylomicrons, which may provide some reduction in the atherogenic potential of the plasma lipoprotein pool. Triglycerides fall moderately and a modest rise in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLc) has been consistently observed in groups of treated patients.
The maximum mean reduction of LDL cholesterol is approximately 20-25% in small studies at the maximal dose tested of 40 mg/day and the reduction is usually in the 16-20% range at the dosage of 10 mg/day. Most subsequent studies have been completed with the 10 mg/day dose. The medication is effective as a single daily dose due to its long residence time in the body. Combinations of ezetimibe with all available statins have been completed and demonstrate LDLc reductions of approximately 25% as additive effects to any statin dose alone.
There are also small additional increases in HDL (2-3%) and reductions in triglycerides (10-15%). Additive effects to statin therapy have also been documented in patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia. Reduction of plant sterols has been demonstrated in phytosterolemia, offering the first drug treatment for this rare inherited disease."
[PubMed abstract from Feb 2007] *http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=ShowDetailView&TermToSearch=17253923
The second abstract discusses the rapid development of myopathy 16 days after adding ezitimebe to the patient' statin and resolved 12 days after removing it.
gardenmaniac, this short introduction to Zetia carries one take home message only... Don't do drugs... you know it makes sense.
Kind regards,
xrn
- xrn
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- Joined: Thu Dec 28, 2006 7:19 am
- Location: Bedfordshire UK
by gardenmaniac » Fri May 11, 2007 8:39 am
XRN..I loved the last line..."don't do drugs_you know it makes sense"
Yes..I DO feel this way...but I know that sometimes it IS the right thing to do...I do take synthroid everyday for my low thyroid...
I have NOT tried any alternatives...my Mom, who's genetic high count I inherited, her #'s are high even ON the statins...she has high blood pressure also, she's been overweight for 50 years..absolutely no heart issues at all...she is on Zocor or Lipitor and takes Niacin...and high BP meds...and God knows what else...
My Dad, on the other hand, has normal/low blood pressure, normal cholesterol, had a quad bypass done at 65...(he did however smoke for 40 years)..lots of heart issues in his family...
I am 50, I don't smoke, my blood pressure is normally about 125/75 or so..(higher yesterday)..I go the gym 4 times a week, not a size 6 like I want, but not overweight, drink a glass of wine or 2 in the evenings, it's just those numbers are high according to the doc...
sigh...
Yes..I DO feel this way...but I know that sometimes it IS the right thing to do...I do take synthroid everyday for my low thyroid...
I have NOT tried any alternatives...my Mom, who's genetic high count I inherited, her #'s are high even ON the statins...she has high blood pressure also, she's been overweight for 50 years..absolutely no heart issues at all...she is on Zocor or Lipitor and takes Niacin...and high BP meds...and God knows what else...
My Dad, on the other hand, has normal/low blood pressure, normal cholesterol, had a quad bypass done at 65...(he did however smoke for 40 years)..lots of heart issues in his family...
I am 50, I don't smoke, my blood pressure is normally about 125/75 or so..(higher yesterday)..I go the gym 4 times a week, not a size 6 like I want, but not overweight, drink a glass of wine or 2 in the evenings, it's just those numbers are high according to the doc...
sigh...
- gardenmaniac
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- Joined: Mon May 15, 2006 9:17 am
by xrn » Fri May 11, 2007 8:51 am
Let me guess... you are female. Accordingly let me point you to the following URL... *http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/334/7601/983
It doesn't get any hotter off the presses than that. Remove the asterisk from the URL before pasting into a web browser.
I suspect your doc may be well meaning but misguided. Many of the references on that URL I have supplied will be able to be read by your doc. It means that you are not facing your doc alone but have a weight of considerable medical opinion and facts behind your argument to trash the statins.
As for outcomes... well gardenmaniac, we all have to die, it is a natuarl corollary to being born and it may just come down to a choice between dying of one thing or another. If the choice were to be mine, I want to die without a bellyful of drug company poison, thank you.
Kind regards,
xrn
It doesn't get any hotter off the presses than that. Remove the asterisk from the URL before pasting into a web browser.
I suspect your doc may be well meaning but misguided. Many of the references on that URL I have supplied will be able to be read by your doc. It means that you are not facing your doc alone but have a weight of considerable medical opinion and facts behind your argument to trash the statins.
As for outcomes... well gardenmaniac, we all have to die, it is a natuarl corollary to being born and it may just come down to a choice between dying of one thing or another. If the choice were to be mine, I want to die without a bellyful of drug company poison, thank you.
Kind regards,
xrn
- xrn
- Posts: 244
- Joined: Thu Dec 28, 2006 7:19 am
- Location: Bedfordshire UK
by gardenmaniac » Fri May 11, 2007 4:57 pm
Yes..I am female...and I had read before that statins did not change the overall mortality rate in women...
Iwill NOT take a stain drug again...but I was told that Zetia is NOT a statin...my doc said it's MORE effective WITH a statin, but sometimes will work on it's own too...
I've discussed with my family my decision to not take the statins...but my doc is having a hard time the numbers being high, blah, blah, blah...
One of the things I agree with in the site in the previous post is that if the cholesteral comes down with the drug, many won't exercise or eat right...
again...it is hard to go against what a Dr that has been through ALOT of school is telling me...
Iwill NOT take a stain drug again...but I was told that Zetia is NOT a statin...my doc said it's MORE effective WITH a statin, but sometimes will work on it's own too...
I've discussed with my family my decision to not take the statins...but my doc is having a hard time the numbers being high, blah, blah, blah...
One of the things I agree with in the site in the previous post is that if the cholesteral comes down with the drug, many won't exercise or eat right...
again...it is hard to go against what a Dr that has been through ALOT of school is telling me...
- gardenmaniac
- Posts: 19
- Joined: Mon May 15, 2006 9:17 am
by xrn » Fri May 11, 2007 7:15 pm
gardenmaniac:
Yes..I am female...and I had read before that statins did not change the overall mortality rate in women...
xrn:
Yes, that is absolutey the truth and it will have been explained by the oh so sensible Malcolm Kendrick, in his BMJ article that I had referenced for you.
gardenmaniac:
Iwill NOT take a stain drug again...but I was told that Zetia is NOT a statin...my doc said it's MORE effective WITH a statin, but sometimes will work on it's own too...
xrn:
I know that Zetia is not supposed to be a statin. It is reckoned to work by inhibiting the absorbtion of dietary cholesterol through the intestines. I have not looked at the specific biochemistry as I am still struggling with the mevalonate pathway and cholesterol production. However, the fact is that dietary intake of cholesterol has no discernible effect on cholesterol levels. just so that you are clear on this point, I will repeat it for you. DIETARY CHOLESTEROL HAS NO DISCERNIBLE EFFECT ON CHOLESTEROL LEVELS IN THE BODY!
This is worth knowing because if that is the truth, then there is no point to taking dangerous medication that inhibits the absorbtion of dietary cholesterol, because it will make no differenece to the cholesterol level in your body. If, on the other hand, the new type of non-statin has another mechanism such as inhibiting the production of cholesterol in the mevalonate pathway, then your cholesterol level will fall and you will be exposing yourself to the same risks as the statins expose you to.
You may be surprised to discover that cholesterol is required for every cell in your body. That being the case... and given that dietary cholesterol has no effect on the amount of cholesterol floating around in your body at any given time, can you imagine the damge being done by interfering with the cholesterol in your body, that is created by your body to maintain its health?
Ask your doctor to provide you with the evidence (scientific proof) that raised cholesterol causes atherogenic changes that cause heart disease. I guarantee he will give you no papers because it is just not true and has never been proven and the drug companies have researched this subject up, down sideways and inside out and still cannot demonstrate the link between cholesterol and heart disease.
Next get used to the idea that cholesterol in your body is your friend. It is helping to maintain healthy cell wall structures. The mevalonate pathway can create substances that are vital to all oxygen breathing cells (all of those which are your own) and they carry out the transfer of food to energy in the cell itself. No energy transfer means that your cells age and die. there is no sens to halting or slowing this process that is vital to your life.
People with low cholesterol die sooner than people with high cholesterol. It is also thought to prevent cancers from occuring because low cholesterol can be a sign that a cancer is present and lowering the cholesterol has given rise to a larger number of cancers in people with lower cholesterols. If you want a pile of refernces for your doctor, say so and we can dig them all up for you.
gardenmaniac:
I've discussed with my family my decision to not take the statins...but my doc is having a hard time the numbers being high, blah, blah, blah..
xrn:
I would be inclined to ask him to do some appropriate reading. We can help you to point him in the direction of the most suitable references for him to educate himself. It is not your responsibility if he cannot keep up with the program. Medicine is not a static body of knowledge and your doctor should be up-to-date.
gardenmaniac:
One of the things I agree with in the site in the previous post is that if the cholesteral comes down with the drug, many won't exercise or eat right...
xrn:
Surprisingly, the people who eat low fat exclusively are the ones who seem to need to diet. the ones who eat a normal varied diet don't appear to have the same difficulty in feeling well-fed and healthy. Inactivity may well be the cause of obesity but perhaps not. Think of the early cave dwellers who did nothing but sit around and mind the young. Did they get fat? Probably not and to speculate one could say that perhaps they were not eating a huge amount of refined sugar or a large amount of carbohydrates. I am, not a nutritionist and I will have to read the literature.
The point of this discourse, gardenmaniac, is that you too can read for yourself. If your doc want to treat numbers I would suggest he wakes up or you should find a doc that wants to treat people. We are not numbers or lab values and to see us in those terms is deeply insulting and entirely foolish. It is not medicine as it ought to be practised.
gardenmaniac:
again...it is hard to go against what a Dr that has been through ALOT of school is telling me...
xrn:
i see what you are saying but he may well have learned nothing during his schooling and he may even be wrong. Schooling does not guarantee that mistakes will never be made. For now, it is comfortable for doctors to parrot what their colleagues are saying. A whole group saying the same thing si more comfortable than one doctor stepping up to the plate and telling his colleagues that they are flat out wrong.
Tak some time to consider what you want for yourself and don't let your doctor push you around. You have the right to a proper explanation of the drugs that he is requesting you to take. All drugs have adverse effects and you are entitled to know what to expect and what sort of risks you are running. Youy should be told how they work. Anything less is just medical bullying and it is completely unacceptable.
Kind regards,
xrn
Yes..I am female...and I had read before that statins did not change the overall mortality rate in women...
xrn:
Yes, that is absolutey the truth and it will have been explained by the oh so sensible Malcolm Kendrick, in his BMJ article that I had referenced for you.
gardenmaniac:
Iwill NOT take a stain drug again...but I was told that Zetia is NOT a statin...my doc said it's MORE effective WITH a statin, but sometimes will work on it's own too...
xrn:
I know that Zetia is not supposed to be a statin. It is reckoned to work by inhibiting the absorbtion of dietary cholesterol through the intestines. I have not looked at the specific biochemistry as I am still struggling with the mevalonate pathway and cholesterol production. However, the fact is that dietary intake of cholesterol has no discernible effect on cholesterol levels. just so that you are clear on this point, I will repeat it for you. DIETARY CHOLESTEROL HAS NO DISCERNIBLE EFFECT ON CHOLESTEROL LEVELS IN THE BODY!
This is worth knowing because if that is the truth, then there is no point to taking dangerous medication that inhibits the absorbtion of dietary cholesterol, because it will make no differenece to the cholesterol level in your body. If, on the other hand, the new type of non-statin has another mechanism such as inhibiting the production of cholesterol in the mevalonate pathway, then your cholesterol level will fall and you will be exposing yourself to the same risks as the statins expose you to.
You may be surprised to discover that cholesterol is required for every cell in your body. That being the case... and given that dietary cholesterol has no effect on the amount of cholesterol floating around in your body at any given time, can you imagine the damge being done by interfering with the cholesterol in your body, that is created by your body to maintain its health?
Ask your doctor to provide you with the evidence (scientific proof) that raised cholesterol causes atherogenic changes that cause heart disease. I guarantee he will give you no papers because it is just not true and has never been proven and the drug companies have researched this subject up, down sideways and inside out and still cannot demonstrate the link between cholesterol and heart disease.
Next get used to the idea that cholesterol in your body is your friend. It is helping to maintain healthy cell wall structures. The mevalonate pathway can create substances that are vital to all oxygen breathing cells (all of those which are your own) and they carry out the transfer of food to energy in the cell itself. No energy transfer means that your cells age and die. there is no sens to halting or slowing this process that is vital to your life.
People with low cholesterol die sooner than people with high cholesterol. It is also thought to prevent cancers from occuring because low cholesterol can be a sign that a cancer is present and lowering the cholesterol has given rise to a larger number of cancers in people with lower cholesterols. If you want a pile of refernces for your doctor, say so and we can dig them all up for you.
gardenmaniac:
I've discussed with my family my decision to not take the statins...but my doc is having a hard time the numbers being high, blah, blah, blah..
xrn:
I would be inclined to ask him to do some appropriate reading. We can help you to point him in the direction of the most suitable references for him to educate himself. It is not your responsibility if he cannot keep up with the program. Medicine is not a static body of knowledge and your doctor should be up-to-date.
gardenmaniac:
One of the things I agree with in the site in the previous post is that if the cholesteral comes down with the drug, many won't exercise or eat right...
xrn:
Surprisingly, the people who eat low fat exclusively are the ones who seem to need to diet. the ones who eat a normal varied diet don't appear to have the same difficulty in feeling well-fed and healthy. Inactivity may well be the cause of obesity but perhaps not. Think of the early cave dwellers who did nothing but sit around and mind the young. Did they get fat? Probably not and to speculate one could say that perhaps they were not eating a huge amount of refined sugar or a large amount of carbohydrates. I am, not a nutritionist and I will have to read the literature.
The point of this discourse, gardenmaniac, is that you too can read for yourself. If your doc want to treat numbers I would suggest he wakes up or you should find a doc that wants to treat people. We are not numbers or lab values and to see us in those terms is deeply insulting and entirely foolish. It is not medicine as it ought to be practised.
gardenmaniac:
again...it is hard to go against what a Dr that has been through ALOT of school is telling me...
xrn:
i see what you are saying but he may well have learned nothing during his schooling and he may even be wrong. Schooling does not guarantee that mistakes will never be made. For now, it is comfortable for doctors to parrot what their colleagues are saying. A whole group saying the same thing si more comfortable than one doctor stepping up to the plate and telling his colleagues that they are flat out wrong.
Tak some time to consider what you want for yourself and don't let your doctor push you around. You have the right to a proper explanation of the drugs that he is requesting you to take. All drugs have adverse effects and you are entitled to know what to expect and what sort of risks you are running. Youy should be told how they work. Anything less is just medical bullying and it is completely unacceptable.
Kind regards,
xrn
- xrn
- Posts: 244
- Joined: Thu Dec 28, 2006 7:19 am
- Location: Bedfordshire UK
by gardenmaniac » Sat May 12, 2007 7:13 am
XRN..
thank you for your response..
it crossed my mind..(and then left) ..
... that Zetia works by inhibiting dietary cholesterol ... but in my case I KNOW it is not what I am or am not eating...my Mom's numbers were super high at one point years ago...she went to a dietician, did a very strict diet for months...hardly any change in the numbers...
I am just going to continue on my current path...eat a balanced diet & exercise...and remember to have fun along the journey!
thank you for your response..
it crossed my mind..(and then left) ..
... that Zetia works by inhibiting dietary cholesterol ... but in my case I KNOW it is not what I am or am not eating...my Mom's numbers were super high at one point years ago...she went to a dietician, did a very strict diet for months...hardly any change in the numbers...
I am just going to continue on my current path...eat a balanced diet & exercise...and remember to have fun along the journey!
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by catspajamas » Sat May 12, 2007 1:10 pm
I don't know if zetia is a form of statins or not but I do know that after I almost died from statins, this so called cholesteral specialists had me try zetia and within 3 days I started being as sick with it(same symptoms as statins) as I was on zocor and lipitor...My body can't be fooled..it knows a statin when it gets hit with one....the first sign something was wrong was the severe abdominal cramping/diarrehea was back....I called the specialist about it and his answer?..don't come back to see me anymore if you can't follow instructions.....some specialist huh?....
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by gardenmaniac » Mon May 14, 2007 8:44 am
catspajamas..
My negative effects from Zocor was severe low back pain and a couple of blackout times ..i didn't connect the dots until the Dr's office ran out of samples after 5 months and I was searching the net looking for alternatives as I do not have Rx ins to pay for stuff...I ran across sites describing muscle aches in just one part of your body..not all over which is what I thought "muscle aches" meant..that I would feel like I had the flu or something..and as my Rx ran out over the weekend..the very first morning after I did not take the Zocor, I had no backache...
The memory thing was twice I did something and then later had no recall of doing it..one was just a little thing..but the other was that I had filed 4 months of tax paperwork and then couldn't find the stuff...becuase I didn't remember filing it...I had made new files..they were in my handwriting..it was filed correctly..but I have absolutely zippo memory of doing it...and even after finding it..I have no memory of it...there may be other times I "lost"..but since I have no evidence of it..who knows?
So..you took Zetia without any other statins & it affected you right away?
My negative effects from Zocor was severe low back pain and a couple of blackout times ..i didn't connect the dots until the Dr's office ran out of samples after 5 months and I was searching the net looking for alternatives as I do not have Rx ins to pay for stuff...I ran across sites describing muscle aches in just one part of your body..not all over which is what I thought "muscle aches" meant..that I would feel like I had the flu or something..and as my Rx ran out over the weekend..the very first morning after I did not take the Zocor, I had no backache...
The memory thing was twice I did something and then later had no recall of doing it..one was just a little thing..but the other was that I had filed 4 months of tax paperwork and then couldn't find the stuff...becuase I didn't remember filing it...I had made new files..they were in my handwriting..it was filed correctly..but I have absolutely zippo memory of doing it...and even after finding it..I have no memory of it...there may be other times I "lost"..but since I have no evidence of it..who knows?
So..you took Zetia without any other statins & it affected you right away?
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by catspajamas » Thu May 17, 2007 6:13 pm
Sorry it took me longer to answer...we were on vacation......yes, zetia affected me right away....I had been off of stations a couple of months by then...As soon as the abdominal cramps started (within a day or two) I stopped taking it.......no way was I going down that road again...
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Statins & Zetia
by nistevo » Thu Jun 07, 2007 1:38 pm
I should have tried to look this up before. I've been on lovastatin for about eight years now & zetia also for about three years. After reading everything today, I aint taking it anymore. Has anyone heard of these meds causing eczema? I really believe it did to me. I'm hoping at the very least it will go away if I'm off this poison for awhile
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by cjbrooksjc » Thu Jun 07, 2007 3:39 pm
nistevo: Yes, Eczema is a statin related side effect. Mine was on both sides of my nose in the creases around the nostrils. It is better but not yet gone after nine months.
Brooks
Brooks
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zetia side effects
by jomemphis » Sat Jul 14, 2007 9:13 pm
I am a woman, now 72, with controlled hypertension. I have been fighting cholesterol for at least 6 years on the strong urgings from my doctor. I refused pharmaceutical statins for several years, and went on red yeast rice, but I developed muscle problems. I was then put on Vytorin, with the same result. Ah, but then there was Zetia ("not a statin"), which I was on for over a year until it "stopped working." Next was Welchol, which drove my numbers up rather than down. The doctor tried to get me on Crestor, but I had become convinced that my excruciating nightly leg cramps were from all the drugs, so I sent for Dr. Graveline's book.
I have now, against my doctor's judgment, taken myself off all cholesterol fighting meds. My leg cramps disappeared after about 2 weeks, and my back pains, which I had not associated with the drugs, have reduced considerably. I also developed peripheral neuropathy--the soles of my feet are numb--and that has not changed in the 3 months since I declared my independence. Is there any hope I can recover sensation and balance in my feet?
I have now, against my doctor's judgment, taken myself off all cholesterol fighting meds. My leg cramps disappeared after about 2 weeks, and my back pains, which I had not associated with the drugs, have reduced considerably. I also developed peripheral neuropathy--the soles of my feet are numb--and that has not changed in the 3 months since I declared my independence. Is there any hope I can recover sensation and balance in my feet?
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by Patty » Sat Jul 14, 2007 9:47 pm
Check out my posts. I had the same question as yours, and have pretty much deciided to quit Zetia. I will wait until I get a cholesterol test next week and talk to my doc.
Just as you said, the side effects seem to be the same for Zocor and Zetia.
I wonder when there will be a big investigation into this very serious problem? I don't believe, at my age (70) I will ever get the strength back in my legs and the pain is ongoing.
Where is the outrage!
Just as you said, the side effects seem to be the same for Zocor and Zetia.
I wonder when there will be a big investigation into this very serious problem? I don't believe, at my age (70) I will ever get the strength back in my legs and the pain is ongoing.
Where is the outrage!
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Re: zetia side effects
by poohhel » Sun Jul 15, 2007 7:46 pm
Jomemphis: I am only 44 and in March was diagnosed with Peripheral neuropathy, but not only in my feet... the feeling of numbness is also in my legs, butt, arms, and shoulders. I was told by my neurologist that I have pinched nerves in my neck and lower back but nothing we have tried has relieved the numbness and weakness. The numbness is actually a relief to the burning and cramping I more often feel through out the day and night. I have the worst time getting myself up from a sitting position and god help me when I have to try and get myself up off the floor. I was only on Vytorin for 16 months but since starting the drug... I have had to forgo my daily workouts, playing volleyball, and ballroom dancing. It is quite depressing and I wish you the best with your recovery.
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by jomemphis » Fri Jul 20, 2007 3:33 pm
Patty,
I agree with you that there will someday be a reckoning for the consciousless promoters of these statin drugs. I just hope to be around for the big celebration.
If it's the attack on the myelin sheath, which Dr. Graveline talks about in his book, that is causing these problems, and if the real problem with cholesterol is the inflammation, then attacking the inflammation ought to be the preferred treatment. For inflammation I am taking aspirin, COQ10, flax and fishoil. I'm going to try L-Carnitine for the neuropathy. Will let you know.
jomemphis
I agree with you that there will someday be a reckoning for the consciousless promoters of these statin drugs. I just hope to be around for the big celebration.
If it's the attack on the myelin sheath, which Dr. Graveline talks about in his book, that is causing these problems, and if the real problem with cholesterol is the inflammation, then attacking the inflammation ought to be the preferred treatment. For inflammation I am taking aspirin, COQ10, flax and fishoil. I'm going to try L-Carnitine for the neuropathy. Will let you know.
jomemphis
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Visit to Podatrist
by poohhel » Tue Aug 21, 2007 1:15 am
Today I went to a podiatrist and he diagnosed me with carpal tunnel in my feet...there is another clinical name, but I can't remember...
Anyway he gave me a shot in my right ankle to relieve the burning and cramping sensations. We will see supposedly by tomorrow I should be getting relief. We will try my left foot next week if it works on my right.
Hopefully it does work, it would be a great relief.
Anyway he gave me a shot in my right ankle to relieve the burning and cramping sensations. We will see supposedly by tomorrow I should be getting relief. We will try my left foot next week if it works on my right.
Hopefully it does work, it would be a great relief.
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