Jozette99's Journal, 21 April 2016

I am sorry you are struggling right now. 

NO!!!!!! DO NOT TOUCH THOSE STATINS!!!!!!! Statins DESTROY brain tissue. Eat Lemons and Garlic. Did they test the LDL particle size? THATS the important thing they NEED to check. If the particles were LARGE, your Ldl is JUST FINE!!! Remember Blood serum Cholesterol shows there is Damage to the vascular system. Not that you have too much cholesterol. you want to lower cholesterol, you repair the damaged Vascular system. Do that with LEMONS and Garlic. REAL vitamin C. NOT ASCORBIC ACID. DO NOT TAKE STATINS!!!!!! My opinion completely. I'm not a Dr. Just a former NASA engineer who knows a lot about a lot of things. 

Also, I have chest pain every day from smoking for 20 years. My left lung stick to the back of my ribs. And my pericardium has partially attached to my sternum because of adrenal fatigue and high stress. THATS where my chest pain comes from. Not from heart disease.  

I quit a year ago. Smoking that is. 

Meet with a naturopath. They would be able to advise you what to take in place of the statins. Investigate Niacin. Just know that if you do that to get the flush free type. They'll give you a flush.  

I'll go with what I know. Quit smoking. Study up on statins. My understanding is they come with a disclaimer in the packaging that says lower cholesterol has never been proven to reduce the incidence of heart attack or stroke. Germany treats it if it's too low. Japan did an extensive study and they do not treat it. 

Damn skippy they will. WHEW, Im a grown man that knows what a HOTFLASH feels like. I got a HOT dose of slow niacin when I thought my heart was the problem. I felt like I was covered in fire ants for about an hour. But Seriously, I would rather see you go high carb and not lose your brain than take statins. PLEASE don't do it. 

Thanks everyone for your support. I will discuss the options with my dr and then go from there.  

A lot I people I know take the statins and at the same time are working on their lifestyle. For instance loosing weight, exercise , eating healthier and keep building that up. Then with their dr, they start cutting back the dose on the statins. Some of them are off completely now. But at least they are protected while in the danger zone. Also some of us just have genetically high levels. My mom is quite old now, 75. She is thin and fit, still really smart, Still plays tennis everyday. She's on them and doing fine. It was the only way to get her levels down. Chances are you have lifestyle options to lower yours but I'd get on them and then kill it with healthy changes and get back off them with the monitoring of your dr.  

If you have time before your doctor visit, educate yourself on cholesterol and the effects and side effects of medication. 

I've got 5 stents in my heart, my cardiologist thinks I probably had a mild heart attack at some point before he started treating me. When I started with him I had 99% blockage in my right coronary artery. 5 years later now since that process started, for the past 2 years I've worked hard on eating better and exercising. My heart now has normal blood flow and I can do strenuous exercise without any chest discomfort. I am proof that it's possible to reverse heart disease, so don't think that you can't do it. Keys to doing that are diet and exercise. Sugar and refined carbs cause inflammation which is at the root of most heart disease, if you're doing LCHF correctly you shouldn't be getting much of that in your diet which is good. Avoid them as much as possible. I'd suggest trying to get your fats from good sources. Avocado, olive oil, coconut oil are good and can help raise your HDL (good) cholesterol. My HDL was 39 when I started, last lab test it was 74, much higher. With HDL the higher the better. I'm not sure what cholesterol ration you're referring to, you wrote that yours is 4.4 and optimal is .5 to -1? The ration I'm familiar with is total cholesterol / HDL. Optimal is 3.5 or lower. Mine is 2.6. As for statins you've already received advice here to not take them but keep in mind that we are not doctors or medical professionals here....me included. I'd suggest you follow up with your doctor, if tests show that you do have heart disease you probably should see a cardiologist also. I'd rather not take statins but I am in the group of people for whom research shows statins do provide some benefit. I take atorvastatin daily, but have been able to reduce my dosage some over time. 

WoW! You've certainly gone through the wringer, haven't you?! Hugs and blessings to you, along with some prayers that you feel better soon! As for the question about statins...mixed feelings here too. There is a history of heart prob's in our family, so it behooved dh and I to look into this also. and weigh out the costs and benefits and alternatives. So, I will just share what we learned and you can do with it whatever you like...its just some observations and ideas.... My FIL was on a popular statin, and developed horrific muscle pain and memory problems. He decided to quit the statin (against the advice of his doc), but he added in more exercise on the treadmill, watched his diet, and started eating ground flax and oats. My mother did the same thing. eating oats and ground flax daily. They both lowered their cholesterol naturally. (Mom's dropped 20 points in 6 months.) In searching for alternatives to the statins (and oats/flax) I happened upon Grapefruit Pectin fiber. I read an article about a cardiologist who recommended it to his father as an alternative to statins. In three months time, his cholesterol count had dropped astronomically, and the blockage in his artery was no longer a danger to him., and he did not require bypass surgery as was previously recommended. And, no side effects. I cannot recall what the exact numbers were, but the net result was that this grapefruit pectin fiber performs 40% better than statins do. I was not a fan of mixing it in water and trying to drink it. I found tablets from Source Naturals, and dh and I take 4 a day. Much more palatable. =) The other thing DH learned about the prolonged use of statins was that it greatly exacerbates Alzheimer's. Your brain needs cholesterol in order to function. Prolonged use of statins appears to reduce the necessary amount of cholesterol required for optimal brain function. So, from what we've gleaned, the Grapefruit Pectin Fiber seems to be pretty awesome stuff. And, I eat LCHF too. =) Hope that helps, or at least gives you some ideas or alternatives to look into down the road. hugs again!!! Annie 

Cholesterol is also necessary for endocrine and brain health. Check out 'Dangers of Statin Drugs' on Westonaprice.org. Just search the title.  

read. http://www.drjohnm.org/2014/06/growing-doubt-on-statin-drugs-the-problem-of-drug-lifestyle-interaction/ https://ethicalnag.org/2011/05/03/can-statin-drugs-really-save-your-life/ http://www.webmd.com/cholesterol-management/news/20140818/statins-side-effects-news http://primaldocs.com/members-blog/statin-side-effects-almost-universal-and-often-missed/ http://drcate.com/no-more-free-lunch-for-doctors/ http://drsircus.com/medicine/run-from-your-statin-recommending-cardiologist/ https://proteinpower.com/drmike/2013/10/31/statins-everyone-maybe-anyone/ http://frugalnurse.com/2015/03/united-kingdom-pays-docs-prescribe-statins/ http://www.thincs.org/melchior1.htm http://www.biznews.com/health/2015/04/02/statins-is-your-doctor-at-the-heart-of-the-great-cholesterol-con/  

http://www.drjohnm.org/2014/06/growing-doubt-on-statin-drugs-the-problem-of-drug-lifestyle-interaction/  

http://www.drjohnm.org/2014/06/growing-doubt-on-statin-drugs-the-problem-of-drug-lifestyle-interaction  

Thanks Jimmie. Awesome article. I've been through it. 

Sorry for the mess. There were a bunch of articles. Not sure why the links wouldn't post properly for me. 

Statins gets a bad rap. There's lots of literature saying they don't help the real problem, but make it worse. There's many who believe in them. Until I had my health in better shape, I took Fenofibrate Micronized by doctor's orders. It's a cholesterol medication that requires a prescription, but it isn't a statin. My body did better on it. Perhaps you want to look into it with your doctor if statin drugs scare you. Blessings!