Do Statins Save Lives, or Just Lower Cholesterol

Cholesterol is a small molecule necessary for life and yet is causing “mounting anxiety on the part of health-conscious people”. This quotation is found in the website at http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/C/Cholesterol.html

This website contains good information on the importance of cholesterol in the body. But then it goes on to adopt the party line that will seek to put more people on cholesterol lowering drugs, and turn healthy people into life long patients. And make normal people into hypochondriacs worried about their cholesterol levels. And this worry puts needless stress in their lives.

Smokers, diabetics, and those with high blood pressure should all be put on statins according to this article.

Why put smokers on statins? Why not assist them to quit smoking? Smoking is a powerful risk factor for heart disease. Cholesterol is not.

Uffe Ravnskov MD, PhD, in his book has pointed to study after study that has shown only a weak or no association of cholesterol with atherosclerosis, coronary heart disease (CHD), or death from CHD.

Malcolm Kendrick MD, also pointed out the lack of association of cholesterol and saturated fat with heart disease.

Why put those with high blood pressure on statins? Studies have implicated that stress adversely affects cardiac arteries. Why not help them recognize stress in their lives and enable them to lower those stress levels and blood pressure without drugs?

Why put diabetics on statins? Why not advise Diabetes II patients, especially those that are obese, to strictly control their intake of processed sugary and starchy foods?

All these alternative suggestions will help people deal directly with their problem and result in less stress, control their weight, reduce their blood pressure, and naturally reduce their cholesterol levels.

Statins have had a benevolent effect on only a narrow population of men that are in danger of dying from a heart attack. The effects are not due to cholesterol lowering but possibly on the inhibition of inflammation.

Have you noticed that statin advertisements on TV speak about reducing the risk of heart attacks by reducing cholesterol levels. It has been shown that cholesterol lowering drugs don’t save lives or reduce CHD. Statins only decrease cholesterol.

In some studies there has been a slight reduction in CHD deaths. However the number of those who did not die of CHD did die from cancer or other serious illness. Animal studies indicate they increase deaths from cancer and other diseases.

Cholesterol lowering drugs have been shown to be ineffective in women. They have no beneficial effect on elderly people over 50-60 years of age. Studies have shown that elderly people with the highest cholesterol live longer than those with lower cholesterol numbers.

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Statins not only affect cholesterol levels but also affect energy production.

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