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Had call from gp surgery to say must come in to see Dr to discuss statins, asked what about them as don't take em, receptionist couldn't say anymore than that so booked in for 2 weeks time.
Thing is cholesterol is all good as is bp, never has been issue, so wondering what reason they want to discuss statins, age possibly or time living with condition, best be good one cause don't want to take otherwise.
I've got the same. According to the message I received it was to do with my age (I'm 43) and they are offered to over 40's. I'm going to see my GP in a couple of weeks to see what they say.
I am a believer in them. In my view they slow/stop plaque formation that lead to CVD and PAD. I now have both. Type IIs (especially if overweight/obese) are even more prone to this. Side effects are often overstated especially on the web!
I am a believer in them. In my view they slow/stop plaque formation that lead to CVD and PAD. I now have both. Type IIs (especially if overweight/obese) are even more prone to this. Side effects are often overstated especially on the web!
I accept a small percentage of people do have side effects but then others suffer side effects with different drugs. There are a number of statins to try so if one does not suit another might. I had to change statin from Rouvastatin to Atorvastatin. The web seems to have a number of dubious "experts" with an anti-statin agenda!
I was told by my GP that all diabetics should take statins to get their total cholesterol under 4. So at 3.6 Stitch147 I would have thought you were fine unless you have a heart condition as well. And regarding the side effects of statins, I know many people put on them and all bar one reported side effects ranging from mild to severe. In some medical conditions, the benefits far outweigh the side effects, so it depends on whether you can live with them.
However, my own side effects had built up over 18 months, and were described as the worst the surgery had seen, (constant grinding pain, bloating, spreading rash, swollen feet, ankles, calves, depression, sleeplessness and worst of all, total faecal incontinence and loss of sensation). Sorry to be graphic but it took me 9 months before they completely subsided after I was taken off them. My friend was found wandering in the street suffering from dizziness and memory loss within 48 hours of starting them and promptly taken off them as well.
My latest GP did some research into alternatives to statins to lower my cholesterol - there are alternatives called fibrates - but found they were also contra-indicated in my case, due to my other medical conditions. So Catch 22, but I have managed to reduce from 7.8 to 5.4 by diet and Benecol which I take daily (and count the carbs!!).
I think they're overrepresented on the web, but likely underestimated in the research. And it seems quite plausible that side effects are more common in people taking more than one drug at a time (which is just about anyone taking statins) since those sorts of interactions aren't well studied.
I accept a small percentage of people do have side effects but then others suffer side effects with different drugs. There are a number of statins to try so if one does not suit another might. I had to change statin from Rouvastatin to Atorvastatin. The web seems to have a number of dubious "experts" with an anti-statin agenda!
I used to take Simvastatin, but one day I started to get horrible aches and pains in my joints. I mentioned it to a friend, who said, 'Ah, statins...', so I saw my GP who said the same. She prescribed Atorvastatin instead and since then I've had no trouble.
If it's recommended more for older peeps, then I confess that I'll be 70 in 10 days . Though I only admit to being 29
My wife was prescribed full dose statins by her stupid GP when she had had Hep A (on her records). Within 2 days she had very serious liver pain and had to stop. For some people these are a dangerous drug which can cause muscle decomposition.
My wife was prescribed full dose statins by her stupid GP when she had had Hep A (on her records). Within 2 days she had very serious liver pain and had to stop. For some people these are a dangerous drug which can cause muscle decomposition.
Yes, that's what happened to my bowel muscles - they simply stopped working properly. What I said to my doctor was "if that's what statins do to my bowel muscles, what are they doing to my heart muscle?"
I need to take Atorvastatin as my Cholesterol was high esp my LDL and I have PAD , Their is also hear trouble in close family.
The time before last my DN wanted me to increase my statin dose as her wards, it’s bit high .
I forget all the numbers now, but my total cholesterol was 4.5 . I refused to increase the dose.
My advise to you @nonethewiser is start doing your research now.
Look up the NICE guidelines for statins before you see your Gp, then do some more research and ask questions on here too .
Oh make sure you get a full breakdown of all the lipids not just , the total cholesterol or just the high density lipids (HDL) or the low ones (LDL);
In my non medical opinion if you don’t have any risk factors and your cholesterol levels are all in the good range then it is really up to you whether you take them or not. Bearing in mind that these are powerful medications.
I'd really recommend going thru this before talking with doc.
The most important thing is the personal risk assessment - what are your individual chances of having some kind of bad CV thing over the next 10 years? And then:how much will the various things you can change reduce the risk? (improving BP, improving cholesterol, quitting smoking etc).
If improving cholesterol looks like it will have a big impact for you, then what kind of improvement would you expect to see from taking a statin versus what kind of possible side effect?
NICE says yr do should go through all this with you and arrive at a joint, informed decision about what to do.
This is the tool NICE says doctors should use to help assess risk for people without existing clinical conditions: https://qrisk.org/2017/ It's just an aide and shouldn't replace informed individual medical assessment but it's based on a ton of evidence for getting a general picture and it's largely consistent with similar tools developed in the US and elsewhere.
Once again, yr doc should go through this tool with you.
For people who do have an existing condition - CVD, PAD, CAD - the tool isn't appropriate; we go straight into the "high risk" category, advised to go on max dosage statin (at least on the guidelines I follow) no matter what. Again, this is based on a ton of evidence which has certainly convinced me.
I have PAD and I take the max dosage of what I think is the strongest statin. Like most people, I don't have any side effects from it.
I have tried three different statins and each time became very ill, yet most people I know who take them are ok. Do your research and make your own decision doc can only advise you to take them but must give you a reason for you to decide, hope it all works out for you @nonethewiser.
@Felinia ....sorry to hear the problems you and your friend had. Massive trauma.
I know we get cholesterol from meat, eggs and full fat dairy products so I imagined being mindful of how much of these I have would possibly help reduce mine which was tested high (I can't remember exact figure without checking notes) but when retested a month after diagnosis and LCHF diet - it had gone down and was 5.7 which DN said was still higher than she wanted.
She has mentioned Statins to me from the very first appointment and I have a friend who was very negatively effected by them, which scared me off a lot. I can't in my line of work manage an income if anything happens and the side effects listed can be severe. She had massive memory loss and difficulties processing language to the point of not being able to communicate. Not to mention very emotional outbursts.
I don't use any butter or spread as I rarely use bread products although DN recommended 1 x piece of wholemeal bread weekly (for fibre) but I just use peanut butter on it or mayonnaise if making half a sandwich. Just wondering what I need to do/avoid to lower cholesterol naturally? What are fibrates? Presumed the Benecol was one of these little drinks but having looked it up seems to be plant based spread?
@nonethewiser good luck, something to definitely talk through with your Dr, go armed with pro/cons and questions and ask what would happen if... / alternative methods... hopefully you with either be okay on them or not need to take them. Some people are absolutely fine on them.
Thanks for also posting about something that concerns a lot of us when it first gets mentioned.
Good luck.
@Felinia ....sorry to hear the problems you and your friend had. Massive trauma.
I know we get cholesterol from meat, eggs and full fat dairy products so I imagined being mindful of how much of these I have would possibly help reduce mine which was tested high (I can't remember exact figure without checking notes) but when retested a month after diagnosis and LCHF diet - it had gone down and was 5.7 which DN said was still higher than she wanted.
She has mentioned Statins to me from the very first appointment and I have a friend who was very negatively effected by them, which scared me off a lot. I can't in my line of work manage an income if anything happens and the side effects listed can be severe. She had massive memory loss and difficulties processing language to the point of not being able to communicate. Not to mention very emotional outbursts.
I don't use any butter or spread as I rarely use bread products although DN recommended 1 x piece of wholemeal bread weekly (for fibre) but I just use peanut butter on it or mayonnaise if making half a sandwich. Just wondering what I need to do/avoid to lower cholesterol naturally? What are fibrates? Presumed the Benecol was one of these little drinks but having looked it up seems to be plant based spread?
@nonethewiser good luck, something to definitely talk through with your Dr, go armed with pro/cons and questions and ask what would happen if... / alternative methods... hopefully you with either be okay on them or not need to take them. Some people are absolutely fine on them.
Thanks for also posting about something that concerns a lot of us when it first gets mentioned.
Good luck.
Hi. My understanding is that most of our blood cholesterol is produced by the liver and the fat you eat has relatively little impact. The recommendation to have a low fat diet etc keeping the cholesterol down is highly suspect.
@Felinia ....sorry to hear the problems you and your friend had. Massive trauma.
I know we get cholesterol from meat, eggs and full fat dairy products so I imagined being mindful of how much of these I have would possibly help reduce mine which was tested high (I can't remember exact figure without checking notes) but when retested a month after diagnosis and LCHF diet - it had gone down and was 5.7 which DN said was still higher than she wanted.
She has mentioned Statins to me from the very first appointment and I have a friend who was very negatively effected by them, which scared me off a lot. I can't in my line of work manage an income if anything happens and the side effects listed can be severe. She had massive memory loss and difficulties processing language to the point of not being able to communicate. Not to mention very emotional outbursts.
I don't use any butter or spread as I rarely use bread products although DN recommended 1 x piece of wholemeal bread weekly (for fibre) but I just use peanut butter on it or mayonnaise if making half a sandwich. Just wondering what I need to do/avoid to lower cholesterol naturally? What are fibrates? Presumed the Benecol was one of these little drinks but having looked it up seems to be plant based spread?
@nonethewiser good luck, something to definitely talk through with your Dr, go armed with pro/cons and questions and ask what would happen if... / alternative methods... hopefully you with either be okay on them or not need to take them. Some people are absolutely fine on them.
Thanks for also posting about something that concerns a lot of us when it first gets mentioned.
Good luck.
Sounds like your friend had the same symptoms my friend had. I was told that about 75% of all cholesterol production is a natural function of the liver, so for some it can be impossible to reduce levels by diet. In fact I would not be surprised if most of the population have a natural liver produced level above 4. Cholesterol is needed to make the brain function properly, I believe. I have my low carb slice dry - no spread. My Benecol is the mini cholesterol lowering drink. I have that rather than the supermarket own brands as it is smaller so has less carbs. If you Google Bezafibrate it will tell you what the drug is, it is one of the fibrate family.
I was put on Atorvastatin after a vasovagal syncope, several years ago.
[The only side effect being ✻surreal dreams✻ ..last night, a worm-like creature with a tiger's face, turned into a tiger cub ..some magic realism for me there, in an otherwise orthodox life]
My cholesterol numbers 'are absolutely fine' ..sez the practice nurse ..which is all I need to know.
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This thread is now closed. Please contact Anna DUK, Ieva DUK or everydayupsanddowns if you would like it re-opened.
. Though I only admit to being 29 
