What supplements can I take instead of statins?

7 cholesterol-lowering alternatives to statins

• Fibrates. Mostly used for lowering triglyceride levels in patients whose levels are very high and could cause pancreatitis.
• Plant stanols and sterols.
• Cholestyramine and other bile acid-binding resins.
• Niacin.
• Policosanol.
• Red yeast rice extract (RYRE)
• Natural products.

How do you beat hereditary high cholesterol?

FH can be easily and effectively treated with a cholesterol-lowering statin. Usually, a high-intensity statin such as atorvastatin or rosuvastatin is needed to bring it down. Sometimes a different cholesterol-lowering drug called ezetimibe is given as well as a statin.

Do statins cause more harm than good?

Researchers warn that unless a patient is at high risk of suffering a heart attack or stroke, statins may cause more harm than good’.

Which is the best statin with least side effects?

In the analysis of 135 previous studies, which included nearly 250,000 people combined, researchers found that the drugs simvastatin (Zocor) and pravastatin (Pravachol) had the fewest side effects in this class of medications. They also found that lower doses produced fewer side effects in general.

Can I refuse to take statins?

Our goal is to decrease your risk of heart disease, heart attack, and stroke. We know that for patients at high risk, statins can do this — and potentially save lives. Before you refuse to take a statin or stop taking a statin, consult your doctor.

How long can you have high cholesterol before it causes damage?

“It adds up over time, which may mean a heart attack or stroke in your 50s or 60s.” The longer you have high cholesterol, the more likely you are to develop heart disease. In one study, people who had high levels for 11 years or more had double the risk than those who had them for 10 years or less.

Can high cholesterol levels be genetic?

What is genetic high cholesterol? Familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH for short) is an inherited condition which can lead to extremely high cholesterol levels. It’s passed down through families in the genes. Without treatment, FH can lead to heart disease at a very young age.

At what age should statins be stopped?

Statins are drugs that lower your cholesterol. But if you are age 75 or older and you haven’t had symptoms of heart disease, statins may be a bad idea. Here’s why: Adults age 75 and older may not need statins.

Are statin drugs bad for your health?

While statins are highly effective and safe for most people, they have been linked to muscle pain, digestive problems and mental fuzziness in some people who take them and may rarely cause liver damage.

Can you get off statins Once you start?

Therefore, most people who begin taking a statin medication will likely take it for the rest of their lives. If you’ve been taking statins and would like to stop, you’ll need to do so with your doctor’s guidance. This is because it can be dangerous to stop taking statins.

Why are statins being taken off the market?

In some instances, after doctors have prescribed a drug for 10 years or more, it is taken off the market because of unforeseen, adverse side effects. We’ve been prescribing statins since the 1990s for patients at high risk for stroke and heart disease. With statins, the side effects actually are well known.

Should you take statins for high cholesterol?

With this condition, cholesterol builds up in your arteries and can lead to angina, heart attack, or stroke. So, statins can be important in reducing these risks. The American Heart Association recommends statins for certain people. You and your doctor should consider statins for you if you:

What happens if you take too many statins at once?

Muscle damage. Statins can cause muscle pains, especially in high doses. In rare cases, they can even cause muscle cells to break down. When that happens, your muscle cells release a protein called myoglobin into your bloodstream.

Are You one of the few people who don’t like statins?

Unfortunately, you also turn out to be one of the few, one of the 3\%–4\% of people who don’t do well with a statin drug. In a few cases, the drugs simply don’t work, but more often the reason is a side effect. The most common statin toxicity is liver inflammation.