Too Afraid To Take Statins - Advice, Comments Anyone?

[montreal1951]

I have high cholesterol, high triglycerides and high homocysteine.
My family physician is pushing statins and I am just too scared .
My father died of Parkinson's Disease and my mother died of Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus. Many family members lived till 83 or 92.
I have fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome (acute exhaustion syndrome is a better word - as I don't get attacks of fatigue - I get attacks of exhaustion)
My first cousin took a statin for 10 years and now cannot walk - the condition is called rham....something.

What I fear is that these drugs have not been used with human populations until now. So we may only have 20 years of data and no documentation of long term effects.

People with no high cholesterol and no indicative factors for heart attacks get heart attacks. Young men who are runners get heart attacks.

There is no one to one correlation between high cholesterol and heart attacks or strokes. The drug companies are making too much money on this and this may result in adverse affects not being counted. Look what happened with bextra, celebrex....

I am scared of getting non-reversible muscle weakness when I already have fibromyalgia. I tell this to my doctor, she still pushes the statin. If I start a statin and then stop because of adverse effects - I can get rebound hypercholesterimia which means my cholesterol will go up even higher than I had before.

I am intuitive and I have a gut feeling that if I take a statin it will make things worse for me in some way not yet documented.

[Lenin]

montreal,

It sounds like you've decided not to take statins. Many people have chose the same route.

[hunter44]

Fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome are both said to be autoimmune disorders. Combined with high triclycerides it is evident that you consume a high carbohydrate diet. You could improve your overall general health by going on a low carbohydrate diet. I recommend Protein Power Life Plan by Drs, Eades, pick up a copy and read and form your own conclusion. Autoimmune diseases are said to be from an overload of toxins in the body. Milk Thistle for liver support and probiotics and Slippery Elm will support the intestinal tract, a good whole foods/low carb diet will improve your health.

[HubbleRules]

Montreal,

I don't think anyone can really help unless we know what your numbers are.

What was your total cholesterol, LDL, HDL and Triglyceride numbers?

High homocysteine can be helped by taking Folic Acid - 800mg/day.

Triglycerides usually respond to lower calorie intake, and especially lower carb intake, and lower trans-fat intake.

Try regular exercise (as much as the CFS will allow), and decrease your intake of saturated fats and oils, increase your intake of Olive Oil, and take Omega-3 supplements to lower your LDL.

If your blood numbers are high - I wouldn't rule out statins - although I don't really know what the risks are for someone who already has fibromyalgia - you should discuss that more with your doctor. You could start with a very low dose - like 5mg of Lipitor daily - and see how you tolerate it. But again, without knowing your numbers, and your Coronary Heart Disease risk factors (overweight, smoker, no exercise, previous heart attack, IMMEDIATE family history of heard disease) - I'd be guessing.

HubbleRules

[vipergg22]

Originally Posted by montreal1951

I have high cholesterol, high triglycerides and high homocysteine.
My family physician is pushing statins and I am just too scared .
My father died of Parkinson's Disease and my mother died of Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus. Many family members lived till 83 or 92.
I have fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome (acute exhaustion syndrome is a better word - as I don't get attacks of fatigue - I get attacks of exhaustion)
My first cousin took a statin for 10 years and now cannot walk - the condition is called rham....something.

What I fear is that these drugs have not been used with human populations until now. So we may only have 20 years of data and no documentation of long term effects.

People with no high cholesterol and no indicative factors for heart attacks get heart attacks. Young men who are runners get heart attacks.

There is no one to one correlation between high cholesterol and heart attacks or strokes. The drug companies are making too much money on this and this may result in adverse affects not being counted. Look what happened with bextra, celebrex....

I am scared of getting non-reversible muscle weakness when I already have fibromyalgia. I tell this to my doctor, she still pushes the statin. If I start a statin and then stop because of adverse effects - I can get rebound hypercholesterimia which means my cholesterol will go up even higher than I had before.

I am intuitive and I have a gut feeling that if I take a statin it will make things worse for me in some way not yet documented.

Some people can take these , but I won't lie to you I am not a statin fan it has left me with permanent peripheral neuropathy in both feet after taking statins for 3-4 years . Permanent nerve damage to both feet , almost complete loss of feeling in both feet , and burning and tingling 24 hours a day . If I had known i would never have started them . the people that can take them should consider themselves lucky but should keep an ever vigilant eye out for any side effects .