OT: Lipitor

[Stealth]

Doc wants me back on but I am skeptical even though it lowered my numbers. Is it really a necessary evil or am I just lining the drug companies pockets and I will find out in the future that it was really bad for me?

[Bud_E]

I'm no doctor and I'm not on Lipitor but it seems like every few months there's another article in the newspapers about unintended beneficial side effects of statin drugs and I haven't heard or read about much downside.

[Ray]

I'm no doctor and I'm not on Lipitor but it seems like every few months there's another article in the newspapers about unintended beneficial side effects of statin drugs and I haven't heard or read about much downside.
I'd say if you can handle it, take it. As Bud noted, all sorts of possible benefits. I can't take statins - not sure why but they feel like poison to me. Make my whole body hurt. A LOT. But my brother has been taking Lipitor for many years with no problems at all and much better cholesterol numbers. Maybe someday they'll decide it doesn't really do much good, but unless it actually does some harm, go for it.

-Ray

[Frank]

but made my arms and upper chest ache like I had been beaten. I noticed even using a screwdriver I would get hand cramps even if it was a pretty small job. My arms and chest also would feel like they were asleep, noticed most when in bed or in the recliner.

After mentioning this to the doctor several times, he said some folks do have side effects. I stopped taking Lipitor and within a week those symptoms went away. He prescribed a different anti-cholesterol drug and I will start taking it next week.

[rnhood]

You don't need those hip drugs. Just take Niacin and, get your weight and diet in order.

[DukeHorn]

I know its a bit pricey as a spread, but my sister did some work on Benecol a number of years ago. She forces my parents to use it. Supposedly help with their numbers.

You can't cook with it and I'm not a big toast/bagel person in the mornings so I haven't jumped on the bandwagon (but I probably should).

[Sheldon4209]

I started on Lipitor four years ago and have had no problems. I was watching my diet and exercising and my number was still 231. Lipitor dropped it to 145.

[Ray]

You don't need those hip drugs. Just take Niacin and, get your weight and diet in order.
Doesn't work for everyone. I exercise a ton and eat a very reasonable diet. My weight is good. But even at my leanest, in my mid-30s, my cholesterol was 376. Its heredity - the doc assured me that anything additional I could do with diet and/or exercise would just be background noise with those numbers. Lipitor and other statins didn't work for me, as mentioned above. I'm currently taking Zetia and it's down a bit below 300. May start niacin soon also. The somewhat open question is whether a high number with no other risk factors (I don't have any others) is something to worry about. I don't think a cardiologist can afford to assume it's not, so they try to bring it down. Which I'm willing to try to a point. But when it cuts too far into my quality of life (which statins did in a BIG way, and immediately too), I'd rather live with the risk.

-Ray

[KeithS]

I have a cardiologist friend who says he takes a statin, a multivitamin and an aspirin every day, and so do most of his collegues. 50 lbs ago I was taking Lipitor and now I'm not, with my Dr's blessing. Unlike a period in my misspent youth, I don't like taking drugs.

[TimB]

At age 30 - 15 years ago, my cholesterol was 339. History of early heart disease, my father had his first at age 38. Both grandfathers died relatively young (57 and 62) of heart attacks.

I've been on simvistatin (Zocor) since about that time, and several years ago added Zetia which has really been beneficial in bringing my LDL down. My current as of 2 weeks ago - total of 158, with HDL of 49 and LDL of 85. I've been taking Vytorin, which is a pre-packaged combination of Zocor and Zetia for about the last 4 years - essentially since it became available.

As with Ray, for me a draconian diet and exercise only worked to a point and given the other risk factors, it's worth it to me to take the meds. I've never had any side effects from any of the drugs.

As for you - guess it all depends on how high your cholesterol is and whether there are any other risk factors...but remember your doctor's best interest is to keep you alive...

[Dekonick]

You take drugs every day and don't even realize it. Drugs are not evil when properly prescribed and utilized according to guidlines given by your doctor.

You breathe oxygen - a drug.
you drink water - a drug.
you eat - all kinds of drugs...
taking niacin in high enough doses isn't easy w/o a prescription version.

The one difference is you are taking a controlled amount under guidance - instead of poping OTC pills (also drugs...)

Coffee - a drug
Chocolate - a drug

testosterone patch... woops! .... :rolleyes:

Statins are fantastic if you can take 'em.

[spiderman]

where 2/3 of the cardiologists attending
who had normal cholesterol levels
were taking a statin anyway for event prevention.

i use quite a bit of lipitor in my practice
and advocate the least amount of medicine
that does the most amount of good
without having any side effects.
...works great!
many people have as good a benefit
at 5 mg a day without side effects
as when pushing the dose to 80 mg
and having issues...

[thwart]

but remember your doctor's best interest is to keep you alive... True, but the amount of money spent lobbying docs to use certain drugs in their patients is amazing... a few years ago it was $14,000 per year for every doc in the US. Fed money for research is dwindling, so drug companies fund a lot of the studies now. A little cynicism is warranted.

So---be your own advocate. Do some reading and ask questions. Some docs are "pill pushers", others much less so.

And ride. A lot.

But remember that for some folks that alone will not be enough to prevent heart disease. Remember Jim Fixx...

[KeithS]

As Dr. Spidey says, Lipitor works and works well. It did for me., I am indeed lucky, no adverse effects, desired results obtained, and taking off weight and riding a lot contributed to the result. In repsonse to a question to my Doc - the one thing to do to prevent heart disease - pick better parents.

[jhcakilmer]

I tend to advocate natural, homeostatic remedies, but in the extreme case that someone has something like Familial hypercholesterolaemia, pharmacology might be the only real solution.

I'm guess that most of you, fall short of being placed in this category. I believe the prevalence is 1 in 500, which means it quite prevelant, but still.

I would encourage anyone to modify your diet, to any extreme, to see how your numbers react. I think if you followed a vegan diet, meaning zero cholesterol, for 6 months you would see significant changes.

But if not, then obviously you need to consider medications, such as statins.

Our healthcare system is very good at treating the acute and traumatic, not chronic, or prevenative issues. Of course, our glutenous culture, doesn't really help much either!

[jhcakilmer]

You take drugs every day and don't even realize it. Drugs are not evil when properly prescribed and utilized according to guidlines given by your doctor.

You breathe oxygen - a drug.
you drink water - a drug.
you eat - all kinds of drugs...
taking niacin in high enough doses isn't easy w/o a prescription version.

The one difference is you are taking a controlled amount under guidance - instead of poping OTC pills (also drugs...)

Coffee - a drug
Chocolate - a drug

testosterone patch... woops! .... :rolleyes:

Statins are fantastic if you can take 'em.

man, your kidding right? Oxygen, water.....drugs? Coffee, chocolate.....??
So if they're all drugs, lets test this hypothesis. I'll eat a pound of chocolate a day, and you'll take a pound of any statin of your choice, and lets see whos liver shuts down first......!

There are absolutely legitimate patients that need these medications, but the majority of the population rather pop a pill then modify their lifestyle. Unfortunately, I haven't seen many GP that really push changing diet or exercise....it's much easier to write a script, and become cynical.

[1centaur]

http://www.amazon.com/Cholesterol-Myths-Exposing-Fallacy-Saturated/dp/0967089700/ref=pd_bbs_2/105-7731069-8113221?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1194444457&sr=1-2

and you won't feel sanguine that doctors hold their views on statins so wisely. Using statins is dogma, but the statistical basis for such use is not built on people with mildly elevated cholesterol and may not be related to cholesterol as much as being an antioxidant. The manipulation and biased interpretation of statistics that led the medical establishment to endorse statins so widely is, IMO, alarming, and raises questions about how scientists with agendas can color arguments in any field to express their feelings or advance their careers rather than cherish the truth.

I predict statins will not be the gold standard for heart disease reduction within 20 years.

[Dekonick]

man, your kidding right? Oxygen, water.....drugs? Coffee, chocolate.....??
So if they're all drugs, lets test this hypothesis. I'll eat a pound of chocolate a day, and you'll take a pound of any statin of your choice, and lets see whos liver shuts down first......!

There are absolutely legitimate patients that need these medications, but the majority of the population rather pop a pill then modify their lifestyle. Unfortunately, I haven't seen many GP that really push changing diet or exercise....it's much easier to write a script, and become cynical.

I am not joking - anything you take into your body has an effect. Call it what you like - when a physician (given accurate information) treats you at least the 'drugs' are tested for safety. Try drinking St. Johns Wort tea - not. I would rather have a SSRI in the same dose - no guesswork.

Your argument about a pound of chocolate to a pound of statin is absurd - take 100,000mg of caffeine a day and see what happens...

How about this - willow bark tea for a headache? Medicine? Drug? Me - I would rather take 325mg tablet of good ole ASA than guess...

Drugs aren't bad - it is how they are used that makes them good or harmful.

Most (or at least alot) of the drugs you know come from natural sources all around you - the only difference is it is in a measured quantity, and in a manufacturered delivery system - be it a shot, pill, elixir, salve, - point is drugs aren't bad. Some folks need 'em to get by day to day - some don't. Thats where your family doctor should come in...

Jeez! I can think of a million other ways to shut down a liver that don't involve statins... try some random mushrooms in your lawn and give it a whirl.

:rolleyes:

[jhcakilmer]

I am not joking - anything you take into your body has an effect. Call it what you like - when a physician (given accurate information) treats you at least the 'drugs' are tested for safety. Try drinking St. Johns Wort tea - not. I would rather have a SSRI in the same dose - no guesswork.

Your argument about a pound of chocolate to a pound of statin is absurd - take 100,000mg of caffeine a day and see what happens...

How about this - willow bark tea for a headache? Medicine? Drug? Me - I would rather take 325mg tablet of good ole ASA than guess...

Drugs aren't bad - it is how they are used that makes them good or harmful.

Most (or at least alot) of the drugs you know come from natural sources all around you - the only difference is it is in a measured quantity, and in a manufacturered delivery system - be it a shot, pill, elixir, salve, - point is drugs aren't bad. Some folks need 'em to get by day to day - some don't. Thats where your family doctor should come in...

Jeez! I can think of a million other ways to shut down a liver that don't involve statins... try some random mushrooms in your lawn and give it a whirl.

:rolleyes:


Well, I guess we'll have to agree to disagree, but I believe in treating patients with the philosophy of "least invasive" to "most invasive"........so if something like St. John's Wort (which has clinical evidence) works, then I'd choose that any day over SSRIs, which have a myriad of pathological side effects, even at titrated doses.

As a society, we take way too many medications, unlike (example) Japan who consumes far less , and on average lives a decade longer. Lifestyle is exponentially more important than pharmaceuticals. But that doesn't sell, or isn't as marketable!