Statins please share your experience/knowledge

www.bhf.org.uk/what-we-do/news-from-the-bhf/news-archive/2020/november/no-difference-in-side-effects-with-a-statin-or-dummy-pill#:~:text=Researchers%20at%20Imperial%20College%20London,as%20they%20were%20with%20statins.

Interesting results from above research showed that people "felt" better when taking neither real pill or placebo! Many people on clinical trials experience side effects when on a placebo. It makes it very difficult to distinguish real effect of drugs.

I have been on statins for years with no apparent ill effects. I sometimes wonder if I should have tried harder to modify my diet and bring down my levels that way.
I am intrigued about the MOT. My surgery does not offer this. About ten years ago, I rang up to enquire about this and was told I had to wait to be invited (just as well I am not holding my breath). Our next door neighbour who is 91 tells me he has not been offered one for about 30 years. He is registered at the same practice. Is this yet another example of the NHS postcode lottery?

pably15

I bet not half as much big pharma makes

You reckon? As an individual, I bet he makes much more - and all for no investment or risk.

growstuff well her symptoms started when she started taking statins and stopped when she stopped taking 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.

Surely there must be a definitive answer on this?

I guess people in the medical profession are stopped from speaking out.

Farmor15

Interesting results from above research showed that people "felt" better when taking neither real pill or placebo! Many people on clinical trials experience side effects when on a placebo. It makes it very difficult to distinguish real effect of drugs.

I always think placebos have to contain something, by definiton.
They are not scotch mist.

growstuff do you yourself have a vested interest in statins?

I was on another forum once, and a poster kept pushing for something[non medical]/ I knew something was up, as it wouldnt have been her normal responses.
Turned out, her son worked in the industry of what we were all talking about. She was essentially backing up his work!

strange how gp's prescribe statins in order to ward off heart attacks and strokes, but the very same statins can cause type 2 diabetes ,which can cause heart attacks and strokes..

pably15

strange how gp's prescribe statins in order to ward off heart attacks and strokes, but the very same statins can cause type 2 diabetes ,which can cause heart attacks and strokes..

It has been shown by many studies that statins will only cause diabetes in those who were already borderline. A slight rise in blood sugar is less damaging than the protective effect of statins in lowering cholesterol.

fancythat

growstuff do you yourself have a vested interest in statins?

I was on another forum once, and a poster kept pushing for something[non medical]/ I knew something was up, as it wouldnt have been her normal responses.
Turned out, her son worked in the industry of what we were all talking about. She was essentially backing up his work!

Yes, of course I do. I've been T2 diabetic for nearly 30 years and I've had a heart attack. I don't particularly like taking drugs and I ignored the warning signs of highish cholesterol for years (until I had a heart attack). After the heart attack, I was prescribed statins and read many research papers and other articles about statins because I knew I was being advised to take them for life (including the authors which people on here have mentioned).

My conclusion was (and still is) that statins are beneficial. I have aches and pains caused by peripheral neuropathy, but I had those long before I started statins. I have had no other side effects which are definitely caused by statins. Why on earth shouldn't I take something which doesn't trouble me and probably lowers my risk of another heart attack?

PS. It's interesting that nearly all the statin "denier" experts have their own commercial diets or health plans to push.

But, no, I don't have a commercial interest in statins. I'm just very concerned about scare-mongering not based on sound evidence. It seems like some followers of an evangelical religion.

exactly Biscuitmuncher, don't need much more evidence than that..when I started taking them gp's wanted cholesterol levels below 6...then it was changed to below 5....that would eventually include more and more people taking them....I tried different statins for years and I can tell you, I took a long time for the side effects to go away completely....

grow stuff, I didn't have a slight rise in blood sugar...I had type 2....and I had blood tests every year for years.before that...and my blood sugar was never raised .

I think the evidence is sound enough when so many people are experiencing the side effects

But millions take them without any side effects. Including me.
Don't let's put people off taking them. They save lives.

people should try them for themselves, if they work for them with no bad side effects, that's good, but for some people the side effects are not worth it..

pably15

exactly Biscuitmuncher, don't need much more evidence than that..when I started taking them gp's wanted cholesterol levels below 6...then it was changed to below 5....that would eventually include more and more people taking them....I tried different statins for years and I can tell you, I took a long time for the side effects to go away completely....

So ... they work for most people, but you would rather they refuse to take them because others (according to you) are making a profit.

pably15

grow stuff, I didn't have a slight rise in blood sugar...I had type 2....and I had blood tests every year for years.before that...and my blood sugar was never raised .

So how many points did it increase by? Many studies have shown that the average is less than 1 mm/mmol.

maybe I wasn't clear enough growstuff...I didn't have high blood sugar.I didn't have type 2 diabetes for years before taking statins. after starting them I developed type 2. I stopped statins years ago. some people are fine with them ,some are not,I would never take them again

growstuff

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

You know, making money from selling books doesn’t mean that someone doesn’t believe what they wrote in the books.

I was told I needed statins nearly two years ago. I refused them put myself on a diet to reduce my cholesterol and started drinking those anti cholesterol drinks, a year later my health check said my level was fine. It's almost time for my annual check I hope my level is still OK.

My view is no one holds a gun against your head so if you don't want to take statins, don't! I take them and the only side effect is a lower cholesterol with a healthy balance. I still eat sensibly and exercise regularly. Fwiw, GPs don't get paid for prescribing anything in the UK, including statins they do get paid for doing health checks.

UK GPs get paid for meeting targets. That includes a target for prescribing statins. So it pays them to get as many people on statins as they can. There was a thread on this last year and two contributors buffyfly9 and Primrose53 both with GP practice management experience posted this. (I hope they don't mind me quoting them but the thread from last August/September is probably still here on GN. I'll search for it.)

In his book, Too Many Pills, Dr James Le Fanu doesn't say people shouldn't take statins. What he says is that it you are at risk from familial hypercholesterolaemia (I think that's how you spell it!) or have history of heart attack or stroke, statins may well save your life. He also says that, for healthy individuals who happen to be over 60 years old, statins are not worth the side effects, if you get the muscle aches, raised blood sugar, brain fog sometimes diagnosed as dementia etc. He quotes research projects (often financed by big pharma) and several case histories of older people on several different medications that may well react adversely with each other. He concludes that statins are not beneficial for healthy 'oldies' and not at all for women! It's an interesting read.

Thank you Lizzypopbottle