High Numbers For Years - High Cholesterol Message Board

Looly · 07-21-2008, 04:15 PM

After all these years of having high cholesterol and LDL I am finally going to do something about it, but worry if it's too late! My excuse for not taking medication is probably like many............don't like statins. I tried to watch my food, but I really didn't do it so well. So now I'm faced with seeing the results of my tests done today.

How much damage do we do to ourselves not trying to lower our numbers? I am now beginning to have anxiety attacks over this. I am 60 female and also diabetic but able to control via diet.

Has anyone been stupid, like me, ignoring your numbers? How dangerous is this?

bakingnut · 07-21-2008, 06:07 PM

You are not alone

I have high numbers too, risk factors in my family history, have an eating disorder which makes it tough with food. I, like you, do not want to take statin drugs. I have Crestor in my cupboard, but it scares me.
I hope it is not to late, and am not really sure where to start

Bakingnut

cook82 · 07-21-2008, 06:25 PM

Hello Looly,

I am very much like you. Initally when I was told I had high cholesterol I was always told your HDL is high so you have nothing to worry about. Then I moved and started with a new doctor who kept lecturing me and didn't care how high my HDL was. I started out with diet and exercise and did fairly well till I hit 50 years old. Then no matter what I did it didn't work. I was on niaspan for 18 months. Then I started to get a slightly high blood sugar level which returned to normal after stopping the drug.

Unfortunately my LDL went up again. It had been as low as 117 on the niaspan. then jumped up to 181 (HDL 71). I have been on 40mg. of simvastatin (generic zocor) now for 3 months. I get retested next monday. Like you I fought statins for years but got to the point where I was too scared not to take them.

One thing that helps and I know this is crazy but I have a friend and a neighbor who are both on the same statin and same dosage. I feel like the 3of us are taking it together. It's comforting. So far no side effects that I can attribute to the drug so I am hoping for good results from next monday's blood draw.

Marie

The Mayor · 07-22-2008, 07:55 AM

Be careful ladies how low you go with your numbers.
When a person is prescribed 20 mg of Zocor, and encounters toxic side effects, the patient often abandons the drug. Yet, if only 5 mg of Zocor were taken, the odds of encountering side effects would be reduced and the therapeutic target (LDL-cholesterol under 100) might be easily achieved.

It's not just Zocor that is often overdosed. The number one statin drug sold in the United States is Lipitor, which is typically prescribed in doses of 10 mg and higher. There are studies, however, showing that as little as 2.5 mg a day is effective for many people. In mnay cases, you can split these pills to save money and obtain a lower dose.

If you are a statin drug user, have your blood tested to make sure your total cholesterol is not below 180 mg/dL. Cholesterol levels below 180 (mg/dL) can increase your risk of cerebral hemorrhage and other lethal diseases. Scientific studies show that the optimal total cholesterol range is 180-220, while LDL-cholesterol should be under 100 and beneficial HDL-cholesterol over 50. Some statin drug users drop their total cholesterol below 150. If these people had taken a lower dose of the drug, they would probably have adequately lowered their cholesterol levels, reduced their toxicity risk, and saved a good deal of money.

Looly · 07-22-2008, 05:12 PM

Mayor....thanks. I thought about halving the 10 mg Lipitor I just brought home. Now I may quarter it. I do not take well to drugs and have always taken way less than prescribed. It's a great way to prevent usual side effects and gives the chance to see how well the medication will sit in me. So .25 mg of Lipitor will be my regimen for a while. We'll see what happens. .25 better than .0.