Find out devastating statin drug side effects. What are the other alternatives you can choose?
First of all, keep in mind that there exist many statin drugs. If you are used to hear about only one brand name drug, such as Lipitor, Zocro, Pravachol, etc., then, understand that these are all STATINS.
The most important thing is that they are all DRUGS. Therefore, they do carry they own side effect, generally or specifically, more or less the same.
As the majority of statin side effects and problems are predominantly a result of systemic exposure; there you can find the general side effect. Now, our blessed organ called the liver is one of the major metabolizers of all the substances in our body, including statin drugs, in major or minor pathways.
As only 60% of all prescribed drugs use the minor pathway of the liver to be metabolized; therefore, other substances can inhibit this pathway easily. This results to further circulation of statins drugs in the bloodstream, “boosting” their effect or/and side effects.
Thus, you might be experiencing the statin drug side effects, including muscle pain and weakness because when they get into muscle tissue it begins to break down.
On the “positive” side statin drug side effects are usually limited to 2 percent or less of the people to whom they are prescribed. However, cholesterol-lowering statin drugs are now the most prescribed class of drugs, with over 13 million people taking them.
CNN, in a story on August 20, 2002, mentioned that these anti-cholesterol statin drugs, were known to cause nerve damage (polyneuropathy) in one in every 2200 patients and that for people over 50 on the drugs for over two years the chances of nerve damage were 26 times higher than the normal population. That puts over 6,000 people at risk for nerve damage each year.
Other statin drug side effects include brain and central nervous system, especially when it comes to declined cognition. To date, Dr. Muldoon in Pittsburgh reported this side effect in all the subjects he included in his study, only after six months of regularly using statins.
Dr. Gupta in the CNN story did mention that the same class of statin drugs had earlier been implicated in the myopathy problems, the worst of which were the dozens of deaths from rhabdomyolysis (muscle damage to the degree that the dying cells in the system can no longer be processed by the liver and kidneys), that were associated with all statins but mostly Baycol, which was subsequently removed from the market.
Merck (the manufacturer of Baycol) knew of this problematic side-effect over 10 years before these deaths, as documented in a US patent, filed in 1989, as a way of mitigating the known myopathy side-effects of statin drugs.
Now, to stick to the facts it is true that, overall, statins are safe for most people, and yes the lowering of cholesterol is shown to prevent heart attacks.
However, there is a tremendous population taking statins, and it is not common knowledge, even among prescribing physicians, that there can be very dangerous statin drug side effects in some people, and that the drugs must be stopped immediately at the first sign of these side effects.
Let’s see what one user of statins, has to say about statin drug’s side effects.
While statin drugs lower cholesterol levels effectively, they do not do so efficiently, since there are many side effects.
Now the question is: Are there other safer alternatives to statin drugs without their side effects? Or a better question: What are the alternatives to statin drugs which do not have negative impact?
Policosanol have been successfully used for lowering cholesterol purposes. For your info, policosanol is extracted from sugar cane wax naturally. It is believed that it can improve they way liver synthesis and metabolizes cholesterol.
Clinical studies have reported the effects of policosanol the same as other presciption drugs when it comes to reduce cholesterol. However, studies have also reported none of the side effects of such lowering cholesterol drugs.
In addition, subjects of such clinical trials included a variety of age-groups, such as elderly persons, diabetics, as well as individuals with liver damage or high blood pressure.
The table below will show how policosanol performs compared with other cholesterol-lowering drugs.
What is more, your pocket is the “king”. When it comes to policosanol price, it ranges less than US$ 30; while the price for other cholesterol drugs ranges around US$ 100.
Now, you can see the difference!
Other natural alternatives to statin drugs include therapeutic lifestyle changes, using other herbs and foods that can keep you healthy and with no side effect. You should be strong enough to continue you natural battle.
