Total cholesterol too low?

[jacal5]

I have read that total cholesterol under 180 could be unhealthy.
My cousin is 38 and on 5 mg. Crestor and now her total cholesterol is 140, HDL-47 LDL-78. I don't know what her count was before the Crestor, but I was wondering if she really needed the Crestor in the first place.
I accidentally found her blood tests and looked at them, and I don't know if I want to ask her what her count was before the medication.
I did tell her that there are lawsuits pending because of Crestor and when she told her doctor she didn't want to take it, the doctor said "who are you going to listen to, your cousin or me."
My cousin does not want to take Crestor, but she is afraid to stand up to the doctor.
As I have posted before, I lowered mine from total-300 to total-172 on plant sterols and Policosinal, so I told my cousin now I don't have high cholesterol any longer without drugs, so go tell your doctor that!
Anyway, any comments regarding low total cholesterol would be appreciated!
Thanks!

[jacal5]

I researched my question more thoroughly and found that optimal total cholesterol levels should be around 200. Low total cholesterol levels like 140 may increase the risk of stroke.

I answered my own question, but thought I would post the info for
everyone.

If there are any other risks for low cholesterol levels that anyone has knowledge of, please post them.

Thanks so much!

[pcovers]

Originally Posted by jacal5

I researched my question more thoroughly and found that optimal total cholesterol levels should be around 200. Low total cholesterol levels like 140 may increase the risk of stroke.
!

It is always helpful to post the source of your research so others may also look it up.

Here is an interesting report on the subject:

Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs Do Not Increase Risk of Stroke

New York (MedscapeWire) Oct 4 — People with high cholesterol who are receiving lipid-lowering drugs are not at an increased risk of stroke, according to a new study presented at the American Neurological Association's 126th annual meeting in Chicago.

While many people take statins and other cholesterol-lowering drugs to decrease their risks of heart attack and stroke, there has been some concern that lowering one's cholesterol too much may actually increase the risk of one particularly lethal form of stroke.

It's known that low cholesterol is associated with an increased risk of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). ICH accounts for only 10%-15% of all strokes, but it causes death in 40%-50% of those who have one.

Until now, no one has shown whether lowering one's cholesterol levels with medication would increase the risk of a brain hemorrhage. "What we found was the exact opposite: Patients [who were on cholesterol-lowering drugs], in fact, had less risk of having the ICH," says lead researcher Daniel Woo, MD, assistant professor of neurology at the University of Cincinnati, in Ohio.

Woo and colleagues studied the medication history of 190 patients with ICH and compared them with 370 control subjects who did not have this type of stroke.

"Whatever causes a patient to have low cholesterol is probably what gives him the increased risk of hemorrhage," says Woo. "The use of cholesterol-lowering drugs does not give you the increased risk of ICH that someone with normal or low cholesterol has."

Ralph Sacco, MD, a spokesperson for the American Stroke Association, says that the findings are encouraging in that they offer additional support for the use of cholesterol-lowering drugs.

"There is a small perceived fear in the past that lipid-lowering drugs may increase the risk of a brain hemorrhage," says Sacco, associate chairman of neurology at Columbia University in New York City. "But this study provides reassurance that these drugs are safe and do not raise the risk of any kind of stroke."

Another:

Beneficial in Stroke Prevention too?
Recent evidence suggests that HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors may reduce stroke risk despite the lack of a clear association between serum cholesterol levels and stroke.[1] This discrepancy is as yet unexplained. A 31% risk reduction in nonfatal strokes was seen in patients treated with HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors compared with patients not receiving this treatment, in a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.[16] Pravastatin reduced fatal and nonfatal strokes by 20 to 30% compared with placebo in 2 clinical trials.[12,13] However, no treatment effect was seen with regard to fatal strokes. This may be because of differences in the pathophysiology of these 2 types of stroke.[1]

[jacal5]

Thanks for the interesting articles, and I will remember to post what I read next time. I read the information below on a few web-sites, but this
one explained it best, in my opinion:



Low Cholesterol Linked to Stroke Risk

High cholesterol is a well-known risk factor for stroke. But new research suggests that low levels of cholesterol in the blood may also increase stroke risk. The study linking low cholesterol to increased stroke risk was presented recently at the 24th American Heart Association Conference on Stroke and Cerebral Circulation which was discussed in last week’s newsletter. About 80% of all strokes are ischemic, and 20% are hemorrhagic.

The researchers compared the cholesterol levels of the stroke patients to 3,700 other people in the Group Health Cooperative of Puget Sound who had not had a stroke. They found that as an individual's cholesterol level rose above 230 milligrams per deciliter of blood (mg/dL), their risk of ischemic stroke increased. For example, a person with a cholesterol level of 280 mg/dL had twice the risk of ischemic stroke as a person with 230 mg/dL.

But the researchers also found that as cholesterol dropped, the risk of -hemorrhagic stroke increased significantly. A person with a cholesterol level below 180 mg/dL had twice the risk of that type of stroke compared with someone at 230 mg/dL.

About 10% of the population have cholesterol levels below 180 mg/dL. It is not clear if the cholesterol is indeed the cause of the stroke, or related to some other cardiovascular factor that is responsible. High cholesterol levels probably increase blockages.

The theory with low cholesterol is that it is necessary to maintain integrity of the vessel wall. Low levels of cholesterol might lead to "leaky vessels." The Japanese have typically low cholesterol levels and a higher than average rate of hemorrhagic stroke.


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[JJ]

Geez, no wonder the public is totally confused, I'm beggining to think even the researchers are confused..