Think Twice Before You Take Statins To Protect Your Heart

If you’re a regular reader of The Daily Health, you’ll know all about the dangers and risks associated with cholesterol-lowering statins. And if you are not, here’s a quick refresher:

The reason why statin drugs have been pushed by Big Pharma and its mainstream cronies as a so-called “wonder drug” for decades is because it does exactly what it is supposed to do: lower cholesterol levels to dangerously low levels.

So, these drugs are an easy sell, especially since cholesterol has been turned into enemy number one… and we all have cholesterol. This naturally occurring substance is not only an essential building block for every cell in your body, but it also plays an important role in hormone synthesis and neurological function.

So, you can imagine once you start taking a drug that lowers your cholesterol levels, there are bound to be some problems.

Risks outweighing benefits

If you look at the list of side effects associated with statin drugs, it is rather frightening. I’m talking about memory loss, liver dysfunction, kidney failure, muscle pain, fatigue, an increased risk of age-related macular degeneration… and the list goes on and on.

And yet, there has been no study yet proving a direct link between raised cholesterol levels and cardiovascular disease… Yes, the mainstream has been hypothesising for decades now that there MIGHT be an indirect link… but it is a hypothesis, not a fact. And it is an indirect link, not a direct one.

It’s like saying “Look there seems to be an awful lot of car accidents. What do all of these cars have in common? Steering wheels! So let’s remove the steering wheels because it will prevent more car accidents.”

As my colleague, nutritionist Martin Hum, recently told his readers at Real Diabetes Truth, studies have shown that statins are more likely to give you type 2 diabetes than help prevent a heart attack.

Even worse, statins could actually increase your risk of diabetic complications and they may cause heart failure by impairing the functioning of the heart muscle, or accelerate hardening of the coronary arteries, so raising the risk of a heart attack.

So, really what is the point of taking these drugs?…

And you’ll ask yourself that same question again once I’ve told you about the results of a very recent study.

Researchers at Harvard Medical School investigated the results from 49 separate clinical trials to see how lowering levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol affected cardiovascular risks. Some of these trials used statins to lower cholesterol and other used non-statin therapies, such as diet.

While their analyses showed that both statins and non-statin therapies reduced bad cholesterol levels, the researchers also found that lowering bad cholesterol levels by one mmol/l (38.7 mg/dl) through diet alone reduced cardiovascular risk 25 per cent compared to a 23 per cent lower risk with statins.

Yes, you are right if you are thinking that diet compared to statin drugs drummed up very similar results. But these results also confirm that there is no need to take these side effect-ridden drugs if you can achieve the same results through dietary changes alone.

So, the next time your doctor recommends that you start taking statins to “protect you heart” tell him or her that you first want to take a different route: following a healthy, balanced diet combined with at least 30 minutes exercise five times per week.

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Disclaimer: Bear in mind the material contained in this article is provided for information purposes only. We are not addressing anyone’s personal situation. Please consult with your own physician before acting on any recommendations contained herein.

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Sources:

Silverman MG, Ference BA, Im K et al. Association between lowering LDL-C and cardiovascular risk reduction among different therapeutic interventions: a systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA. 2016; 316(12):1289-1297.