Statins

I agree MOnica - I live with awful ME/CFS, and by leaving us to cope alone with private support etc, the NHS are leaving us in the hands of charlatans, organisations with no safeguarding of vulnerable adults nor Child Protection, and at best you could call the self serving, un police checked part of the voluntary sector.

I used to work on in these areas, so can sadly spot the charlatans, but rely on some of them!

I’ve been on atoravastatin for years with no side effects. When I was first prescribed statins I did suffer the horrible muscle cramps (getting in and out of bed was a nightmare) but when the doctor changed my prescription to atoravastatin the muscle cramps disappeared. My husband also takes them with no side effects. I have incredibly high cholesterol and diet alone will not reduce it. Both sides of our family have suffered and finally succumbed to strokes so we’re not taking any unnecessary chances!

My dad stopped taking statins and started on a regime of Niacin (vitamin B3) 500mg daily (a natural product). Over time it brought his cholesterol levels down to within normal limits. He continued taking it throughout the years with no ill-effects.

Unfortunately my dear husband (DH) has high cholesterol but was not happy ☹ about taking long term statins. I told him about the Niacin.

So when he was next in the Netherlands, visiting his mum, he spoke to the family's GP about stopping the statins and going taking Nacin. The Dutch GP was agreeable but on the basis that my DH still had his cholesterol levels checked.

My DH's cholesterol levels have normalised and remained in a good range. Along with the Niacin (vitamin B3) 500mg/day, he also started taking Omega 3 capsules.

I started on them too as, on my side, there is a family history of raised cholesterol. So far my borderline levels have normalised but I will still take them.

When taking Niacin - there is a bit of an usual side-effect!

Niacin can cause flushing ?, unless you get the non-flushing version.

The first time I started to flush I could feel myself tingling, ears getting hot, my face started to feel sunburnt as did the rest of me while the Niacin seemed to work through my body, opening up small capillaries near the surface of the skin.

I looked as if I had sunburn ?. The effect lasted for about an hour. The first time it happened I was a bit frightened ? but I was at my mum and dad's place when it happened and they said it would be ok. We had a good laugh about it, and thereafter I called it 'the sunburn vitamin'! ?

An added bonus for me (when taking the Niacin) has been the fact that the circulation in my hands and feet have improved. But this was before I learnt that there is a non-flushing version!

These days we taken the non-flushing version but every now and then we end up getting the "sunburnt look" if one of the tablets isn't quite the non-flushing version.?

I cannot advocate taking Niacin as an alternative treatment to statins because everyone is different. Some things work for people, some things don't.