Sunday, May 3, 2015

Why would he be prescribed a Statin?

This post is to request information pertaining to Statin Drugs. Thank you for allowing me to solicit any knowledge you may have on the subject.

My father was advised by his doctor to start taking Lipitor.  He declined. What I can't understand is why it would have been advised in the first place. He doesn't fit any of the criteria (that I had previously understood) for prescribing Lipitor.

He is a non-diabetic, 73-year-old, non smoker, with a cholesterol level of 140 (I'm unsure of the breakdown), and a BMI of ~29. As far as we know, there is no heart disease in his family, his paternal line has an extraordinary history of longevity. His father lived well into his 90's and had a grandfather who lived until 104.

I know some of you who stop by here are in the medical profession and/or are well read on these subjects. I'm looking to compose a list in the comments of links to further information on the subject.

Thank you so much!

SD

10 comments:

  1. If you want to know why ask the prescribing doctor.

    If you're looking for advice on a course of action then "decline to take the statin" is correct.

    I'm not a doctor but I'm moderately well read on the subject.

    Lipitor is a particularly bad statin as opposed to Crestor - Lipitor is fat soluble while Crestor is water soluble.

    The script was for a large dose of Lipitor, a fat-soluble statin. Fat soluble statins are much more likely to be involved in drug interactions, and they can induce insulin resistance and possibly cause diabetes. If you’re going to give an unnecessary drug, why wouldn’t you at least give one with the fewest side effects?

    From http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/statins/statin-madness/

    Here's a summary of the issue:

    http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/statins/statins-everyone-maybe-anyone/

    with some speculation as to why a doctor would prescribe a unnecessary statin.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Steve.
      The Doctor's reply when he was asked why it would be necessary considering my father's healthy cholesterol level was something like "cholesterol level doesn't matter anymore".

      I'm trying to keep my tin foil hat in the closet here and searching to see if any further reliable medical reports have been made on prescribing statins to healthy men (or any men) over the age of 55.

      Thank you for the links. Those are exactly what I'm looking for to be armed with more information.

      Delete
  2. Here is a summary of the bad stuff that Statins are responsible for:

    http://www.naturalnews.com/045350_statins_side_effects_killing_people.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you mp3!
      That link's sources will have me reading for a long time. Excellent!

      Delete
  3. I know you're trying to "keep your tinfoil hat in the closet here" but statin drugs are simply the medical industrial complex's slow motion euthanasia protocol. Here's my personal experience with those damnable drugs: http://hawaiianlibertarian.blogspot.com/2011/04/statin-zombie-apocalypse-slow-motion.html

    Nevertheless, if you need something convincing to give your Father so that he continues to decline them, check out: http://drmalcolmkendrick.org/the-great-cholesterol-con/

    And there's also a book from a Scandavian Dr. Uffe Ravnskov. You can download his book The Cholesterol Myths, as a pdf for free from here: http://www.charlescoty.com/user/The%20Cholesterol%20Myths%20by%20Uffe%20Ravnskov.pdf

    Hope this helps.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Keoni!
      I had a feeling you'd have a lot of information on this. I've learned so much from you regarding food and health - still making and enjoying the bone broth!

      On a personal note, I've enjoyed your last few posts. Thank you for the mention and the link!

      Delete
  4. My rheumatologist tried to scare me into going on statins because of an elevated cholesterol level. I'm only 45 but naturally predisposed to high cholesterol without other complicating issues like extra weight or high blood pressure. I took them for about a month but had horrible muscle and joint pain. After some research I came to the conclusion that the cure is worse than the disease. I stopped taking them and adopted a low carb lifestyle that has been way more effective than those gawd-awful pills.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi SQT,
      Have you had your cholesterol level checked since you've been eating low carb?

      My cholesterol was 243 last November. LDL is high - 176. BP 112/60 My doctor didn't recommend anything but to change my diet (no suggestions on what to change). I'm 40 and obviously female. From what I've been reading, statins are really pointless for women. I've been on a zero carb diet (<5 g/day) for two months now and looking forward to having another lipid panel done in November. I've already noticed a substantial decrease in joint pain (inflammation).

      Delete
  5. Besides the fact that statins have almost no real benefit in the very vast majority of users, they have many serious side effects including cancer and diabetes. The physiological processes statins (and a popular cholesterol-lowering diet pill) either invoke diabetes or aggravate it are rather well known (described in this article: http://www.supplements-and-health.com/garcinia-cambogia-side-effects.html).

    Low cholesterol levels are associated with cancer. Your dad, apparently, has already a low level of cholesterol. Therefore, taking statins, particularly in his situation, is insanity and irresponsible dangerous medical advice to suggest to do so.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Witovi,
      That link you provided has so much information. It's led me down several other paths of interest, like Leptin resistance.

      Now I'm reading up on that relationship between low cholesterol and cancer.

      Thank you!

      Delete

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