Statin Medications: Why I Would Never Take One

The American Heart Association recently published new guidelines that will encourage doctors to prescribe statins to 30 percent of adults in the United States. This recommendation doubles the amount of adults from the previous guidelines. Is this needed, or is this further proof that the pharmaceutical companies are influencing medical institutions to increase their profit? ¹

Dr. Carl Orringer, quoted in an NBC News article, says “many more people are going to be treated with statins as a result of these guidelines, that’s the good news, but bad news is more people will experience side-effects.” ²

Translation (without political correctness): The good news is big pharma, and U.S. heart doctors are going to make a boatload of money from this, but the bad news well it will cause people harm.

Nevertheless, what is a statin, why are they prescribed, and why are statins bad for your health?

Statins

Statin medications are HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors, which were originally discovered from fungus used to produce red yeast rice. Statins reduce cholesterol levels by inhibiting the liver produced HMG-CoA reductase enzyme. Statins are prescribed for people with high cholesterol levels in the hopes of preventing cardiovascular disease, heart failure, and strokes. ^{3 4}

Statins cause negative reactions in the body, they include:

• Statin medications often reduce cholesterol below optimal levels, which create many health issues. Elevated cholesterol is not the cause of heart disease, but a warning sign produced by our body by systemic vascular damage caused by metabolic syndrome. Our body requires normal amounts of cholesterol for it to function properly. Our body needs cholesterol for proper brain function, sex hormone production, adrenal hormone production, sperm health, and tissue repair. Reduction in cholesterol is why statins have been linked to memory issues. A great book to read on how to determine proper cholesterol levels in the body is Cholesterol Clarity. ^{5 6 7}
• Liver damage. ^{8 9 10}
• Reduced Coq10 production in the liver. Ironically, a loss of CoQ10 production can reduce energy output from the heart over time that can lead to further heart disease, heart failure, and muscle weakness. This is known as the statin paradox, statin medications are supposed to lower your chance of heart disease, not increase it, which it does in some people. ^{11 12 13}
• Reduced glutathione production. Glutathione is one of the strongest antioxidants our body produces and helps us mediate damage from oxidative stress. ¹⁴
• Reduced ATP production, which would decrease energy and reduce mitochondrial output. ¹⁵
• Increased risk of diabetes. Statins increase insulin resistance at least in white men per a recent study. ^{16 17 18}

So what should you do if you must take a statin?

Recommendations to Help Combat Statin Damage

• Jarrow Ubiquinol – 100 – 300 mg daily.
• Jarrow Pqq – one capsule daily with food.
• Brain Octane – one to two tbsp. daily with food
• Nordic Naturals Ultimate Omega or Doctor’s Best DHA 500
• Change your diet; try to follow either the Perfect Health Diet or the Bulletproof Diet