Statins please share your experience/knowledge

BettyBoop49

Oh dear - so, statins raise the risk of Type 2 Diabetes! Sadly then so does Bisoprolol ( beta blocker) another frequently prescribed drug for atrial fibrillation
Im on both so no wonder I can’t bring my blood sugar into normal range!
Grrrrrrrrr!

Have you considered trying a low carb diet? There is a GP called Dr David Unwin who has had considerable success trying this with his diabetes patients. His GP practice spends about £68,000 a year less on medication than the average for GP practices in his area.

‘British doctor pioneers low-carb diet as cure for obesity and type 2 diabetes’, The Guardian
www.theguardian.com/society/2023/apr/09/british-doctor-pioneers-low-carb-diet-as-cure-for-obesity-and-type-2-diabetes

Some people find that their cholesterol and/or triglycerides fall on this diet, too.

‘What’s at the heart of healthy eating? Dr David Unwin discusses low carb and its cardiovascular benefits’, Diabetes.co.uk
www.diabetes.co.uk/in-depth/whats-at-the-heart-of-healthy-eating-dr-david-unwin-discusses-low-carb-and-its-cardiovascular-benefits-2/

singingnutty, that's very true, I take thyroxine for an underactive thyroid, and I had...probably still have high cholesterol, I never had high blood sugar before my gp started me on statins, I don't have it now since I stopped them, and I'll never take them again, and what your pharmacist told you about gp's being paid by drug companies to prescribe them, I was also told that ,by a nurse...I was also told that your body makes cholesterol to compensate for statins reducing it, because every organ in your body needs it..

I'm not usually the slightest bit bothered about scare stories, but there is a lot of anecdotal tales of people almost losing their mobility due go statins.
I do take them, but I'm not at all happy about it.

tictacnana

I was called in after my blood tests as a matter of urgency. Scared the heck out off me. The doctor wanted to know why I wasn’t on statins. Did I have high cholesterol? No… but most people of my age are on them . I asked our friendly pharmacist about this and he explained that GPs are PAID by drug companies to get patients on them whether they need them or not. I don’t take them. I don’t need them.

I wonder if there is a misunderstanding here. I think GPs may receive financial incentives from the NHS for hitting certain targets, e g giving a certain percentage of their patients a particular vaccination, or prescribing statins to patients with a risk over a certain level of having a heart attack or stroke within the next 10 years.

In 2018 The Telegraph stated that 'NHS bosses currently offer GP practices financial incentives to boost the rate of patients handed the cholesterol lowering medication [statins].'
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/05/21/gps-paid-handing-statins-puts-patients-review-finds/

This was also reported by diabetes.co.uk three years earlier.
www.diabetes.co.uk/news/2015/jan/gps-could-be-given-incentives-to-prescribe-statins-under-new-nice-proposals-97906949.html

I don’t know if GPs are still offered financial incentives by the NHS to prescribe statins, but if so this could be what the pharmacist was talking about.

Taken for five days so far not noticed any problems.

pably15

singingnutty, that's very true, I take thyroxine for an underactive thyroid, and I had...probably still have high cholesterol, I never had high blood sugar before my gp started me on statins, I don't have it now since I stopped them, and I'll never take them again, and what your pharmacist told you about gp's being paid by drug companies to prescribe them, I was also told that ,by a nurse...I was also told that your body makes cholesterol to compensate for statins reducing it, because every organ in your body needs it..

The nurse needs to go on a retraining course and/or read some research.

Skye17

BettyBoop49

Oh dear - so, statins raise the risk of Type 2 Diabetes! Sadly then so does Bisoprolol ( beta blocker) another frequently prescribed drug for atrial fibrillation
Im on both so no wonder I can’t bring my blood sugar into normal range!
Grrrrrrrrr!

Have you considered trying a low carb diet? There is a GP called Dr David Unwin who has had considerable success trying this with his diabetes patients. His GP practice spends about £68,000 a year less on medication than the average for GP practices in his area.

‘British doctor pioneers low-carb diet as cure for obesity and type 2 diabetes’, The Guardian
www.theguardian.com/society/2023/apr/09/british-doctor-pioneers-low-carb-diet-as-cure-for-obesity-and-type-2-diabetes

Some people find that their cholesterol and/or triglycerides fall on this diet, too.

‘What’s at the heart of healthy eating? Dr David Unwin discusses low carb and its cardiovascular benefits’, Diabetes.co.uk
www.diabetes.co.uk/in-depth/whats-at-the-heart-of-healthy-eating-dr-david-unwin-discusses-low-carb-and-its-cardiovascular-benefits-2/

I do have a low carb diet ... and have done for years. For me, it's a healthy diet and, I'm sure, the main reason my diabetes is controlled. Nevertheless, my triglycerides are still too high.

My personal opinion is that good health is the result of many factors, including healthy lifestyle, some medication ... and luck. If medication helps and doesn't cause intolerable side effects, use it. There's so much absolute garbage written about statins and uninformed people who open their mouths when they should keep them shut. There is no doubt that they reduce cholesterol at a population level. If you're one of the minority who can't tolerate them, try them and then stop, but be aware you're increasing your risk, especially if there are no lifestyle changes.

About 75% of the UK population over 60 is overweight or obese. For me, the big question is why don't they do something about their weight. I'm sure if they did, the need for statins and other medication would reduce.

Growstuff I am a size 12/14 eat a very healthy diet, exercise, our hobby is hiking and we don’t eat any processed foods.
I have very high cholesterol, this is familial.
I cannot tolerate statins, my side effects have been; severe constipation, muscle pain and cramps, an aggressive rash all over my body, tendinitis and a shoulder pain that kept me awake for many nights.
Should I keep my mouth shut and just suffer the side effects?

pennywhistle, what a lovely receptionist, how does she manage to keep her job, I hope you reported her...and you were quite right to ask for a test ..

Growstuff...there's a lot of truth talked about statins ,if you don't have diabetes but have high cholesterol...take the statin..it might give you diabetes...but hey ho..it will lower the cholesterol.....seems to be all that matters. and you don't have to be overweight to have high cholesterol

I don't think it's the nurse who needs to do some research

I’m pleased to hear it BigBertha.

pably15

Growstuff...there's a lot of truth talked about statins ,if you don't have diabetes but have high cholesterol...take the statin..it might give you diabetes...but hey ho..it will lower the cholesterol.....seems to be all that matters. and you don't have to be overweight to have high cholesterol

Agreed, but high cholesterol and obesity are risk factors for heart problems. Statins are prescribed because they lower risk. Some factors, such as age and genetics, can't be changed. Weight and lifestyle could be changed, but so many people seem reluctant or unable to do much about them. Cholesterol is another factor which could be changed.

pably15

I don't think it's the nurse who needs to do some research

We'll have to agree to disagree then. Personally, I'd prefer to believe the results of thousands of research studies rather than a random nurse.

Sago

Growstuff I am a size 12/14 eat a very healthy diet, exercise, our hobby is hiking and we don’t eat any processed foods.
I have very high cholesterol, this is familial.
I cannot tolerate statins, my side effects have been; severe constipation, muscle pain and cramps, an aggressive rash all over my body, tendinitis and a shoulder pain that kept me awake for many nights.
Should I keep my mouth shut and just suffer the side effects?

No, just don't take them and accept that your risk of heart problems is increased.

pably15

Growstuff...there's a lot of truth talked about statins ,if you don't have diabetes but have high cholesterol...take the statin..it might give you diabetes...but hey ho..it will lower the cholesterol.....seems to be all that matters. and you don't have to be overweight to have high cholesterol

That isn't how it works. Research has shown that blood sugar might be increased for some people. Those who were already borderline might become diabetic. The relative risks should be balanced.

Why is there such a fuss about statins and not other drugs?

I take an oestrogen blocker because I've had breast cancer. I know it's causing side effects, such as hair loss, difficulty in controlling my weight and possibly osteoporosis. It's been shown that it reduces risk of the cancer returning by a couple of a percent. What should I do? Tolerate the side effects or increase my risk of the cancer returning?

All medicines involve risk of side effects. If the side effects are intolerable, people just have to accept that their risk of something else can't be reduced, so I don't understand why people make such a big fuss, apart from those who make a lot of money from being contrarian.

My mum had to take them, they made her so poorly. Watching her walk was like Watching someone walk through quick sand and she had awful nightmares

Biscuitmuncher

My mum had to take them, they made her so poorly. Watching her walk was like Watching someone walk through quick sand and she had awful nightmares

You can't know whether it was statins which caused that.

MissAdventure

I'm not usually the slightest bit bothered about scare stories, but there is a lot of anecdotal tales of people almost losing their mobility due go statins.
I do take them, but I'm not at all happy about it.

MissA
Having just read that I’m sending you a PM.

growstuff It’s not worth bothering. Falling on stony ground I’m afraid.

Reading through all this, I sometimes wonder what we all think we will eventually die of?

Thinking of two men I know, 93 and nearly 95.

One in a care home, just being transferred for the second time in a few days to hospital as he seems to have a ‘blockage’ and hasn’t ‘been’ for days. The other in hospital after an infection, and eating practically anything makes him choke, he exists on protein drinks.

I’ve no idea what their risk of heart attacks or strokes is, but their overall quality of life is not great. For one in particular, it’s just existing.

Living to a really old age is certainly not ‘for cissies’ in many cases, to quote Bette Davies.

growstuff if you read Dr James Le Fanu's book, Too Many Pills, you might change your mind. Big Pharma successfully persuaded doctors to lower the previously 'safe' upper limit for cholesterol from 6mmol to 5mmol in order to get a lot more people onto statins. GPs are paid to prescribe them. Ostensibly, it's in the name of preventative medicine.

There's too much respected research for some random GP/journalist to change my mind.

I expect Dr Le Fanu made quite a bit of money from selling his books.

I bet not half as much big pharma makes