I wanted to see if anyone has tried very low dose statins long term with no side effects. My doctor keeps trying to push them on me but the potential side effects scare me. My total cholesterol is 240, LDL 162, HDL 55 and triglycerides are 98. All my other labs are good but diet doesn’t budge any of these no matter what I try. I am not overweight I have never smoked and have a few drinks on the weekend. I’m also very active. I’m just not even sure if I need them because I have no other health issues. I have tried to get the doctor to call in an order for a calcium scan but he refuses to so I might try to do that on my own somehow. He is trying to get me to take 10 mg per day of pravastatin and tells me that one has the least side effects but I’m just not sure I want to go that route.
Vince
Super Moderator
My dad had his first heart attack at age 60, my mom at age 70. They both had bypass surgery and were put on statins. Today both are still alive and thriving. My dad and mom are both 88 years old. So they've done good on statins. Definitely is not the same for everyone.
I was on Lipitor for years and because of it I always had a mild lower back ache. No matter what I did regarding diet/weight/exercise I was unable to get my Cholesterol numbers within a good range. As soon as I found a doctor that understood the Thyroid and started me on started Cytomel, I was able to stop the Lipitor, and my cholesterol levels are all good. I posted the specifics on another thread here a while back if you are interested.
No just ldlc which was 22 and supposed to be less than 30
Golfboy307
Active Member
If you search this site (or the Internet in general), you will find many threads on the evils of statins. They are also one of the most prescribed drugs in history and have a proven medical record of reducing heart attacks in patients at risk. But like all drugs they can have side effects. Or none at all.
As the understanding of heart disease grows, it is becoming more clear that it is multi-factoral and cholesterol plays only a partial role. Inflammation, blood glucose levels, hypertension are some of the many primary causes of damage to your arteries. And as you mention, you can go get a calcium scan for $150 on your own in most states.
For myself: My LDL and LDL- P (particle count) was in the "yellow zone". 120 and 1100 respectively. Overall, my totals were 160, with HDL of 52 and trigs of 75. I wanted to bump my LDL down just a bit so have used a specific brand of Red Yeast Rice (which contains a very low dose of the chemical that forms statin drugs). I use the RYR under my doctor's care. It has bumped my LDL from 120 to 90 range. Nothing dramatic, but that is what I was looking for.
IMHO: if you have a zero calcium score and you have no hypertension or pre-diabetes, I wouldn't take statins.
As the understanding of heart disease grows, it is becoming more clear that it is multi-factoral and cholesterol plays only a partial role. Inflammation, blood glucose levels, hypertension are some of the many primary causes of damage to your arteries. And as you mention, you can go get a calcium scan for $150 on your own in most states.
For myself: My LDL and LDL- P (particle count) was in the "yellow zone". 120 and 1100 respectively. Overall, my totals were 160, with HDL of 52 and trigs of 75. I wanted to bump my LDL down just a bit so have used a specific brand of Red Yeast Rice (which contains a very low dose of the chemical that forms statin drugs). I use the RYR under my doctor's care. It has bumped my LDL from 120 to 90 range. Nothing dramatic, but that is what I was looking for.
IMHO: if you have a zero calcium score and you have no hypertension or pre-diabetes, I wouldn't take statins.
Vince
Super Moderator
Coronary Calcium Scan
Also known as calcium scan test. A coronary calcium scan is a CT scan of your heart that detects and measures the amount of calcium in the walls of your coronary arteries. Buildup of calcium, or calcifications, are a sign of atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease, or coronary microvascular...
www.excelmale.com
M
MarkM
Guest
Many years ago when I first had my cholesterol tested my LDL was 320 and my HDL only 4. Doctor told me I was going to have a coronary. He put me on numerous statins but each of them made my liver enzymes soar so he took me off of them and told me I was not a candidate for statins. He then told me to watch my diet. My wife lots of research and order a product online for me called Cholesterol Care by Healthy Choice Naturals. I actually thought it was just hogwash and really didn't want to take it but I did to appease her. Months later I went back to the doctor and my total cholesterol had dropped to 170 and my HDL had starter to rise. As time went by my cholesterol continued to come down and my HDL continued to go up.
After a few years I stopped taking the Cholesterol Care and my cholesterol for the most part is relatively normal. My total cholesterol runs around 140 to 150, my LDL stays around 90, and my HDL around 36. My HDL needs to come up but nothing I have done has increased it. My VLDL stays around 20. Bottom line is that my overall cholesterol is MUCH improved and I don't take any medication for it.
I have no ties in any way to this product other than having success with it. It worked well for me but that is not to say you'd have the same results. Just sharing my experience.
After a few years I stopped taking the Cholesterol Care and my cholesterol for the most part is relatively normal. My total cholesterol runs around 140 to 150, my LDL stays around 90, and my HDL around 36. My HDL needs to come up but nothing I have done has increased it. My VLDL stays around 20. Bottom line is that my overall cholesterol is MUCH improved and I don't take any medication for it.
I have no ties in any way to this product other than having success with it. It worked well for me but that is not to say you'd have the same results. Just sharing my experience.
I am 59 years old retired 3 years ago in pretty decent shape eat well and moderate exercise most days. I have always had high lipids but put off the statin thing and 3 weeks ago I was in my doctors office and asked for a Boston Heart Lab test to be run. Once again it came back even worse than previously so I agreed to go on 10mg Crestor a week ago. I have not noticed many sides at this point. It is not just that I have high cholesterol but the makeup of almost every marker so I happy to be on it now! I can report back when I see the results. BTW my wife just went on Zetia at 57.
Golfboy307
Active Member
To Mark M above:
Note that the product you mention (Cholesterol Care by HCN) contains a heft dose of Red Yeast Rice which as I described has the same essential active ingredient as statin drugs. It also has Niacin which is proven to raise HDL.
Glad it worked for you but it is similar to taking medication given the active ingredients.
Note that the product you mention (Cholesterol Care by HCN) contains a heft dose of Red Yeast Rice which as I described has the same essential active ingredient as statin drugs. It also has Niacin which is proven to raise HDL.
Glad it worked for you but it is similar to taking medication given the active ingredients.
Sounds interesting, I will check into it.
I am on statin low dose. Combined with zetia/Ezetimibe my LDL-C is only 39. Although cholesterol is just one issue of heart disease it's the main issue. The theory that I got is if your HDL is greater than 2x of LDL-C. You're good enough. Good thing about statin is it will reduce your CRP inflammation as well.
My problem is by genetic Ihave always low HDL, by default only 35 but I can raise it with HIIT these days but only up to 51. THe large cholesterol of HDL is going to wipe out your LDL-C. My CAC is very high due to my previous obesity. All plaque was on RDA.
I've checked all boston labs,etc. Result is the same the ApoB atherogenic inside the LDL-C is paralel with the LDL-C.
I've read all the anti statin post on Internet and also the most respected Cholesterol doctor. Both has good argumentation and nonetheless If statin doesnt make you happy, try PCSKi injections.
However, statin is only one thing, what's needed to reduce the actual MI event is actually anti platelet/anti coag agent to reduce platelet stickiness.
My problem is by genetic Ihave always low HDL, by default only 35 but I can raise it with HIIT these days but only up to 51. THe large cholesterol of HDL is going to wipe out your LDL-C. My CAC is very high due to my previous obesity. All plaque was on RDA.
I've checked all boston labs,etc. Result is the same the ApoB atherogenic inside the LDL-C is paralel with the LDL-C.
I've read all the anti statin post on Internet and also the most respected Cholesterol doctor. Both has good argumentation and nonetheless If statin doesnt make you happy, try PCSKi injections.
However, statin is only one thing, what's needed to reduce the actual MI event is actually anti platelet/anti coag agent to reduce platelet stickiness.
right, the one that raises glucose, impacting muscle and memory in the study is high dosage to the older men. There's the study also which statin that has less side effect but I kinda forget which one. Of course one needs to find an individual dosage that works for them.
According to what I’ve researched and what my doctor says, pravastatin is the least prone for side effects. I hope it is the case.
mooseman109
Active Member
I had a MI two years ago, 100% occluded LAD. Put a stint in and saved me on the table. No prior history, great shape was training for “the murph” when it happened. Total cholesterol was running 150-180, LDL in the 90 range, HDL 45. Dr put me on 20 mg crestor daily. Total now is under 100, LDL 35, HDL still 45.
I really have no sides, very rarely I notice my hands seem tight. I will stay on it.
I really have no sides, very rarely I notice my hands seem tight. I will stay on it.
Systemlord
Member
Same here, my cholesterol and triglycerides are normal and my doctor keeps recommending statins.
M
MarkM
Guest
I noticed the same thing when I started taking it but there has to be a difference. I had liver damage taking the statins, but my liver enzymes were normal taking the Cholesterol Care.
I tried a different anti-platelet agents from Clopidogrel, Ticagrelol and finally switched to Prasugrel. With clopidogrel my DNA test , it doesn't metabolize the drug properly,Ticagrel causes dyspnea/main side effect, finally Prasugrel (Japan made) works for me maybe because I'm asian. Blood is always very smooth almost like water now compared to the previous. The root cause of all this plaque is chronic low-grade inflammation mainly created by the lower abdomen's fat (so: bad diets and sedentary living). The actual MI mechanism is plaque rupture that occurred in soft plaque. The statin, is going to convert that soft plaque to hard plaque with more calcium so not easy to rupture. So statin has multiple pathways as long term mechanism to reduce MI event.
I sincerely believe one thing that makes statin has bad reputation is because statin reduces cholesterol on the entire body while we actually need cholestorol in some part, we only need to reduce the LDL-C cholesterol around the liver transport pathways.
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Many people tolerate statins, but if you have ANY family history of ALS, you should completely avoid them.
My grandfather had ALS. My uncle had high cholesterol and his doctor put him on statins before ALS was known as a risk factor. He had a horrible reaction that disabled him for years. He was unable to walk or even speak, and eventually died from it.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
My grandfather had ALS. My uncle had high cholesterol and his doctor put him on statins before ALS was known as a risk factor. He had a horrible reaction that disabled him for years. He was unable to walk or even speak, and eventually died from it.
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Associated with Statin Use: A Disproportionality Analysis of the FDA's Adverse Event Reporting System - PubMed
These findings extend previous evidence showing that significantly elevated ALS reporting extends to individual statin agents, and add to concerns about potential elevated occurrence of ALS-like conditions in association with statin usage.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
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