Should I take statins or not?

[bamboozled]

4 hours ago, Mike Lister said:

I've not thread of that Eric but I recently heard the UK is now offering an annual statins like shot which sounds interesting.

Mike, is the Mee Chok clinic you referenced for blood tests on the opposite corner from the main Mee Chok plaza?

[Mike Lister]

11 minutes ago, bamboozled said:

Mike, is the Mee Chok clinic you referenced for blood tests on the opposite corner from the main Mee Chok plaza?

It's in the same plaza as Rimping supermarket, in the rear, under the parking structure, just before the car wash.

[hotandsticky]

On 11/27/2023 at 6:02 AM, Mike Lister said:

Ah well, if Youtube says it does, it must be so! 

 

 

You do understand, don't you?, that You Tube is only the medium that brings you the content - the content, in this case, is from a medical practitioner.

[Mike Lister]

5 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

 

 

You do understand, don't you?, that You Tube is only the medium that brings you the content - the content, in this case, is from a medical practitioner.

The content in this case is from someone who may or may not be medically qualified but appears to be a medical blogger who has cherry picked articles and extracts to make their argument which may or may not be supportable, we'll never know. And therein lies the problem. We're being asked to believe what he says yet how can we when his reference is bits and pieces of articles and studies, cobbled together to make the case that supports his belief. That is not medical science at its best and if you want to convince the public of something to do with their health, it needs to be.

[hotandsticky]

13 minutes ago, Mike Lister said:

The content in this case is from someone who may or may not be medically qualified but appears to be a medical blogger who has cherry picked articles and extracts to make their argument which may or may not be supportable, we'll never know. And therein lies the problem. We're being asked to believe what he says yet how can we when his reference is bits and pieces of articles and studies, cobbled together to make the case that supports his belief. That is not medical science at its best and if you want to convince the public of something to do with their health, it needs to be.

 

 

I wouldn't argue with that principal and, like anything in the media these days, one needs to look for the balance in any content. In this case the 'doctor' has patients and has quoted reliable sources of research. On the other hand he is a statin taker (and therefore 'pro statins' - and he is pushing his multivitamins. However, I found the content to be quite well presented and overall quite balanced.

 

I wouldn't 'diss' something just because it was on You Tube; I have have found very good dietary information and quite enjoy watching Dr Eric Berg and Barbara O'Neill....... I am not a blind follower of either and I am sure someone will post derogatory reports about both of them (Wikipedia actually crucifies her with this description "is an Australian alternative medicine personality, known for promoting dangerous and unsupported alternative medical practices and ideas"). I listen to what they have to say and take away the bits that fit with my own research and life style. 

[LS24]

On 11/16/2023 at 9:17 AM, Sheryl said:

A cardiac calcium test or stress test would be advisable and results could help inform target LDL levels and medication decision.s

Hi Sheryl,

 

Would a hospital like Nonthavej Hospital in Nonthaburi be able to conduct the stress test and calcium test? If not, do you have any recommendations, please? What would you estimate the costs of these tests to be?

Edited November 28, 2023 by LS24
added

[Startmeup]

No. There are so many other things to try before even considering statins. Diet and lifestyle being a priority. And no I don't mean eating more leafy greens, nuts/seeds, vegan food or other such food lacking nutrients

Id also add it depends on your motivation to want to change/be healthy. There are experts to consult with, who actually read studies and have real life experience of working with clients on how to reach solutions. 95% of practitioners are just glorifed pill pushers. 

Edited November 28, 2023 by Startmeup

[mokwit]

1 hour ago, hotandsticky said:

Dr Eric Berg

Dr of Chiropody. 

[mokwit]

1 hour ago, Mike Lister said:

The content in this case is from someone who may or may not be medically qualified but appears to be a medical blogger who has cherry picked articles and extracts to make their argument which may or may not be supportable, we'll never know. And therein lies the problem. We're being asked to believe what he says yet how can we when his reference is bits and pieces of articles and studies, cobbled together to make the case that supports his belief. That is not medical science at its best and if you want to convince the public of something to do with their health, it needs to be.

If someone puts forward results of a single research paper as proof, be wary. It is very unusual that one paper "proves" anything.

Edited November 28, 2023 by mokwit

[hotandsticky]

14 minutes ago, mokwit said:

Dr of Chiropody. 

 

Which immediately makes him more qualified than you.

 

Are you claiming that what he says is not valid?

[bamboozled]

1 hour ago, Startmeup said:

No. There are so many other things to try before even considering statins. Diet and lifestyle being a priority. And no I don't mean eating more leafy greens, nuts/seeds, vegan food or other such food lacking nutrients

Id also add it depends on your motivation to want to change/be healthy. There are experts to consult with, who actually read studies and have real life experience of working with clients on how to reach solutions. 95% of practitioners are just glorifed pill pushers. 

I don't have an unhealthy lifestyle at all "except" for too much booze, generally speaking. But I didn't drink anything for 6 weeks and my LDL went UP, not down. I get a LOT of exercise and eat well, mostly cooking at home...so I know what's in it. And that's veggies, nuts, fruits, salads, fish, yogurt, eggs, olive oil, hardly any processed foods, etc.... I do eat beef and pork that has some fat and some butter, bacon but....screw it. Can't be insane with this stuff. I could be wrong but I don't think my high C is from my diet or lack of exercise. If lifestyle is the problem, Christ, I give up. Nonetheless, my LDL level is showing as high for some reason and has for almost a decade.

[bamboozled]

2 hours ago, Mike Lister said:

It's in the same plaza as Rimping supermarket, in the rear, under the parking structure, just before the car wash.

Thanks. Google shows some clinic across the road but it didn't seem quite right.

[Mike Lister]

9 minutes ago, mokwit said:

If someone puts forward results of a single research paper as proof, be wary. It is very unusual that one paper "proves" anything.

Exactly why the general public should be reading research papers in order to conclude whether a product such as statins are suitable or not, escapes me. OK, if you have interest in such things and it's a hobby or you worked in a related field, fine. But most people wouldn't be able to disseminate fact from assumption or be able to grade such things in order to make a useful decision. This is not a hole in a bathroom wall and a video about how to patch it. This is a subject that required millions of days academic qualification and research, trials, tests, peer reviews, etc etc etc, the general public is deluded to think they might be even a little bit equipped to decide or judge these things. 

[Mike Lister]

2 minutes ago, bamboozled said:

Thanks. Google shows some clinic across the road but it didn't seem quite right.

Keep the long row of shops on your right and head underneath the building at the very end, you can't miss it.

[Startmeup]

9 minutes ago, bamboozled said:

I don't have an unhealthy lifestyle at all "except" for too much booze, generally speaking. But I didn't drink anything for 6 weeks and my LDL went UP, not down. I get a LOT of exercise and eat well, mostly cooking at home...so I know what's in it. And that's veggies, nuts, fruits, salads, fish, yogurt, eggs, olive oil, hardly any processed foods, etc.... I do eat beef and pork that has some fat and some butter, bacon but....screw it. Can't be insane with this stuff. I could be wrong but I don't think my high C is from my diet or lack of exercise. If lifestyle is the problem, Christ, I give up. Nonetheless, my LDL level is showing as high for some reason and has for almost a decade.

"veggies, nuts, fruits, salads" are generally considered healthy, for many people they cause alot of issues.
 

You can start by watching this. Cholesterol by itself is not a good marker. You need a whole package approach, most doctors probably dont even know that basic fact. 

 

Edited November 28, 2023 by Startmeup

[Mike Lister]

1 minute ago, Startmeup said:

You can start by watching this
 

 

And yet another. A sport physiotherapist who branched into diet and wrote books that he now promotes by saying things that will promote his book sales. THIS IS NOT MEDICNE, chumps. 

[mokwit]

24 minutes ago, hotandsticky said:

 

Which immediately makes him more qualified than you.

 

Are you claiming that what he says is not valid?

I wonder how qualified he is when he writes that apples are good for you because they contain no Sodium. I suspect with a B.Sc in Life Sciences from 40 years ago I actually am more qualified than him. It seems Chiropractors have branched out into endocrinology without the foundation of a medical degree. - a complex subject where you have to study the whole organism as a Doctor does because it is all interlinked. Dr of Chiropody is a made up chiropractor qualification. In the UK they have somehow got people to believe that they are a branch of medicine.

 

I actually have one of his books - he describes various body types and their collection symptoms - liver type, adrenal type, thyroid type, but does not support it in any way. I am not saying the observations are invalid, but you have to support them. I don't see any support for his arguments that the symptoms and cause/underlying organ/gland are related.

 

I am not saying conventional medicine is always right or that unconventional approaches are wrong, but one should not masquerade as Doctors when you are not.

Edited November 28, 2023 by mokwit

[mokwit]

19 minutes ago, Mike Lister said:

Exactly why the general public should be reading research papers in order to conclude whether a product such as statins are suitable or not, escapes me. OK, if you have interest in such things and it's a hobby or you worked in a related field, fine. But most people wouldn't be able to disseminate fact from assumption or be able to grade such things in order to make a useful decision. This is not a hole in a bathroom wall and a video about how to patch it. This is a subject that required millions of days academic qualification and research, trials, tests, peer reviews, etc etc etc, the general public is deluded to think they might be even a little bit equipped to decide or judge these things. 

Unless you have sufficient grounding in scientific methodology to actually critique the methodology of a research paper you almost might as well not be reading it. The fact that it got published doesn't mean much these days.

[mokwit]

56 minutes ago, mokwit said:

Dr of Chiropody. 

My bad actually  Doctor of Chiropractic (D.C.) not a conventional medicine foot doctor.

[pomchop]

statins caused my calf muscles to twitch... a lot...

 

doc put me on ezetimibe few years ago and cholesterol now good numbers and no more muscle twitchs or bad side effects that i am aware of...

 

i am no doc but might be worth looking into with a doc

 

EZETIMIBE (ez ET i mibe) treats high cholesterol. It works by reducing the amount of cholesterol absorbed from the food you eat. This decreases the amount of bad cholesterol (such as LDL) in your blood.

[pomchop]

2 minutes ago, pomchop said:

statins caused my calf muscles to twitch... a lot...

 

doc put me on ezetimibe few years ago and cholesterol now good numbers and no more muscle twitchs or bad side effects that i am aware of...

 

i am no doc but might be worth looking into with a doc

 

EZETIMIBE (ez ET i mibe) treats high cholesterol. It works by reducing the amount of cholesterol absorbed from the food you eat. This decreases the amount of bad cholesterol (such as LDL) in your blood.

and i still take a 10 mg statin every other day and ezetimibe every day..

 

Ezetimibe is not a statin medication, it is a cholesterol absorption inhibitor. Ezetimibe,fenofibrate and statins are cholesterol lowering medications. Ezetimibe can be taken together with statins or fenofibrate as their cholesterol lowering effects are complementary.

[bamboozled]

\

52 minutes ago, Mike Lister said:

Keep the long row of shops on your right and head underneath the building at the very end, you can't miss it.

I'm on it....look for the "very healthy guy" lurking out front later this afternoon.

[bamboozled]

5 minutes ago, pomchop said:

and i still take a 10 mg statin every other day and ezetimibe every day..

 

Ezetimibe is not a statin medication, it is a cholesterol absorption inhibitor. Ezetimibe,fenofibrate and statins are cholesterol lowering medications. Ezetimibe can be taken together with statins or fenofibrate as their cholesterol lowering effects are complementary.

I'm going to latch on hard to the info I posted last night about high LDL reading being a false signal due to all the good fat one eats (see below). Hey all....I'm cured!

 

I have the plan to follow Sheryl's advice on getting a coronary calcium scan. That seems to be more definitive than an LDL reading. That is, one might have high LDL but no plaque build up in the arteries. In which case, I'd run straight to the bacon aisle...hallelujah.

 

 

A healthy diet

We know that an unhealthy diet can cause high triglycerides, while a healthy diet generally leads to low triglycerides.
One interesting note is that sometimes low triglyceride levels can occur with high LDL levels (which often indicate a higher heart disease risk). If low triglyceride levels lower heart disease risk, but high LDL levels increase it, what can cause this inconsistency?
There are two types of LDL particles that should be taken into account when calculating heart disease risk:
    •    LDL-A particles are larger, less dense, and lower your risk.
    •    LDL-B particles are smaller, denser, and increase your risk.
When you have low triglyceride levels but high LDL levels, it could indicateTrusted Source that you have a diet filled with healthy fats.
Healthy fats will not only cause an increase in good cholesterol (HDL) but can also change the type of the LDL particles in the blood. Therefore, those high LDL levels may not actually be a bad thing.
Instead, it is more likely that they are LDL particles that have become larger and less dense from the intake of healthy fat. Low triglycerides and high HDL levels in the blood will generally support this idea.

 

[Sheryl]

48 minutes ago, mokwit said:

Unless you have sufficient grounding in scientific methodology to actually critique the methodology of a research paper you almost might as well not be reading it. The fact that it got published doesn't mean much these days.

Above is often true.

 

But more to the point few people actually bother to read the actual research. Rather they glom onto mass media (or worse, social media) accounts of what the research supposedly says,  which is invariably inaccurate or missing very important nuances and caveats (like,  for example, the enormous difference between correlation and causation -- most studies that make the media  simply show correlation. And sometimes one that can't even be replicated.). In the cause of "alternate" and social media, sometimes  the claims are completely bogus and the studies do not even exist, and the footnotes if any are to unrelated articles. People simply do not check. The modus operandi seems to be to start with what one wants to believe then google until something is found that seems to support that, and accept it uncritically.

Serious scientists do not post on YouTube, TikTok or the like. Those media simply do not lend themselves to proper presentation of science. 

[Startmeup]

29 minutes ago, bamboozled said:

I'm going to latch on hard to the info I posted last night about high LDL reading being a false signal due to all the good fat one eats (see below). Hey all....I'm cured!

 

I have the plan to follow Sheryl's advice on getting a coronary calcium scan. That seems to be more definitive than an LDL reading. That is, one might have high LDL but no plaque build up in the arteries. In which case, I'd run straight to the bacon aisle...hallelujah.

 

 

A healthy diet

We know that an unhealthy diet can cause high triglycerides, while a healthy diet generally leads to low triglycerides.
One interesting note is that sometimes low triglyceride levels can occur with high LDL levels (which often indicate a higher heart disease risk). If low triglyceride levels lower heart disease risk, but high LDL levels increase it, what can cause this inconsistency?
There are two types of LDL particles that should be taken into account when calculating heart disease risk:
    •    LDL-A particles are larger, less dense, and lower your risk.
    •    LDL-B particles are smaller, denser, and increase your risk.
When you have low triglyceride levels but high LDL levels, it could indicateTrusted Source that you have a diet filled with healthy fats.
Healthy fats will not only cause an increase in good cholesterol (HDL) but can also change the type of the LDL particles in the blood. Therefore, those high LDL levels may not actually be a bad thing.
Instead, it is more likely that they are LDL particles that have become larger and less dense from the intake of healthy fat. Low triglycerides and high HDL levels in the blood will generally support this idea.

 

What are healthy fats and a healthy diet?
If you asked me what a health fat is I would say saturated fats and a health diet is one predominantly of grass fed meat.

Real time tested nutrition. 

 

Your initial post didn't even quote your triglycerides.
This is arguable the most important factor.
Whats your Trig-HDL ratio? An important marker.

How is your Hb1ac i.e metabolic health? 

 

CRP Inflammation? 

 

How's your Vitamin B12 and Vit D? 

 

Oh it's in the reference range, doesn't mean much the reference ranges are not reliable in many cases.

 

Im not trying to confuse you but there are Many moving parts that need addressing in a whole body approach that will not be answered on these pages. Coronary calcium scan is a good idea. I had blood tests done within the last few months, there is 28 pages of results. You won't get in depth analysis like that from any doctor on the planet who is in the system on the "production line". It cost $A600 for an hour consult plus the cost of the tests and the same again to interpret the tests but If you're serious about your health and getting to the root cause of some issues Consult with a specialist, a proper specialist (choose wisely) not a production line physician, the best people are usually booked out long in advance (months) even at those prices. They read the studies so you don't have to, that's why you are paying them top dollar.

 

Edited November 28, 2023 by Startmeup

[xylophone]

8 minutes ago, Startmeup said:

What are healthy fats and a healthy diet?
If you asked me what a health fat is I would say saturated fats and a health diet is one predominantly of grass fed meat.

Real time tested nutrition. 

 

Your initial post didn't even quote your triglycerides.
This is arguable the most important factor.
Whats your Trig-HDL ratio? An important marker.

How is your Hb1ac i.e metabolic health? 

 

CRP Inflammation? 

 

How's your Vitamin B12 and Vit D? 

 

Oh it's in the reference range, doesn't mean much the reference ranges are not reliable in many cases.

 

Im not trying to confuse you but there are Many moving parts that need addressing in a whole body approach that will not be answered on these pages. Coronary calcium scan is a good idea. I had blood tests done within the last few months, there is 28 pages of results. You won't get in depth analysis like that from any doctor on the planet who is in the system on the "production line". It cost $A600 for an hour consult plus the cost of the tests and the same again to interpret the tests but If you're serious about your health and getting to the root cause of some issues Consult with a specialist, a proper specialist (choose wisely) not a production line physician, the best people are usually booked out long in advance (months) even at those prices. They read the studies so you don't have to, that's why you are paying them top dollar.

 

What are healthy fats and a healthy diet?

 

I hope the mods don't mind me posting this, but it is related to this post and others on the thread, and it appeared this morning in the New Zealand Herald, and is very interesting, so I thought I'd post it – – – not that I think I'm going to live to be a hundred years old, but I might be able to donate my liver to Penfold's in the long run!

 

The search for the secrets to a long, healthy life is as old as mankind. A new study has found a series of clues that take us closer than ever before – and they lie in our blood.

 

In mid-October, a Swedish-led team of researchers reported on their study of blood samples taken from 44,000 people from the age of 64 over a period of up to 35 years. They compared 12 “biomarkers” in the blood of those who went on to live past the age of 100, and those who did not.

These markers included cholesterol and blood sugar, the markers of metabolism; uric acid, a marker of inflammation; creatinine, a measure of kidney function; iron, which is linked to anaemia; and enzymes associated with liver function.

 

The research revealed that the chances of becoming a centenarian are linked to 10 of the 12 biomarkers - and three in particular.

“Those who made it to their 100th birthday tended to have lower levels of glucose, creatinine and uric acid from their 60s onwards,” says co-author Dr Karin Modig, associate professor of epidemiology at Sweden’s Karolinska Institute. “But although we are genetically predisposed to having higher or lower levels, most of these markers are closely linked with our lifestyle.”

 

In other words, there are things we can do day-to-day that can help us to stay healthy and live longer. Here are a few.

 

1. Get your cholesterol balance right

One of the study’s main findings seems to fly in the face of received medical advice. The research revealed that the people with the lowest levels of total cholesterol had a lower chance of reaching 100 years, compared to those with higher levels.

 

“Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) – the “bad” cholesterol – can build up in the walls of your arteries, which, if left untreated, can cause strokes or heart attacks,” explains Dr Gaurav Sabharwal, founder of One5 Health, which specialises in preventative healthcare and longevity. “But high-density lipoprotein (HDL) – the “good” cholesterol – protects the heart by removing the LDL cholesterol and transporting it back to the liver, where it is removed from the body. This means HDL levels should be high to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease. However, elevated total cholesterol levels – the good plus the bad – are also a major risk factor.”

 

“The evidence from large clinical trials demonstrates very clearly that lowering LDL cholesterol reduces our risk of death," says Professor Jeremy Pearson. Photo / 123RF

 

This is because the bad outweighs the good.

The new research sits alongside several recent studies suggesting that the link between high total cholesterol and cardiovascular disease disappears in older people, but these remain highly controversial. According to the British Heart Foundation’s Professor Jeremy Pearson: “The evidence from large clinical trials demonstrates very clearly that lowering LDL cholesterol reduces our risk of death overall and from heart attacks and strokes, regardless of age.”

 

What to do:

The British Heart Foundation advises eating less saturated fat in foods such as processed meat, pies and pastry, butter, cream and coconut oil. Instead, opt for foods that are high in unsaturated fat such as olive oil, nuts, avocado and oily fish. A high-fibre diet of fruit, vegetables, wholegrains and pulses can also lower cholesterol, as can regular exercise and cutting down on drinking. Smoking increases “bad” cholesterol and lowers “good” cholesterol, so quitting is essential.

 

2. Tackle your blood sugar

The research shows an association with lower levels of glucose in our 60s and a stronger likelihood of living to 100. “Very few of the centenarians had a glucose level above 6.5 earlier in life,” says Dr Modig.

An A1C test measures the average amount of sugar in the blood over the past few months and expresses it as a percentage: of the haemoglobin proteins that are holding glucose, 5.7 per cent to 6.4 per cent signals pre-diabetes, while 6.5 per cent or higher usually indicates diabetes. People living with diabetes have a higher risk of heart attacks and strokes and damage to the blood vessels affecting the nerves, eyes and kidneys.

What to do:

“Type 2 diabetes is preventable for a significant majority of people,” says Dr Paul McArdle, a dietician and diabetes specialist. “It’s thought that 60-90 per cent of Type 2 diabetes is linked to excess body weight, so keeping a healthy weight has been found to maintain lower blood glucose levels.”

McArdle recommends a minimally processed diet and, in particular, avoiding sources of highly refined carbohydrates such as sugars, which cause blood sugar spikes.

 

3. Drop your uric acid

Uric acid is associated with gout, the painful joint condition, but it’s also a surrogate marker for your metabolic health in general. “We often see raised uric acid levels in people with diabetes, pre-diabetes, insulin resistance and weight-related conditions such as hyperthyroidism and obesity,” says Dr Sabharwal. It’s unsurprising, then, that people in the study with the lowest uric acid had a four per cent chance of reaching 100, while only 1.5 per cent of those with the highest levels became centenarians.

 

Uric acid is associated with gout, the painful joint condition, but it’s also a surrogate marker for your metabolic health in general. Photo / 123rf

What to do:

Foods containing purine, including red wine, cheese, red meat, shellfish, bacon and organ meats such as liver, can elevate uric acid. A low-purine diet, combined with drinking two to two-and-a-half litres of water per day, can reduce our levels.

“Losing weight and, in particular, dropping body fat mass can also reduce the uric acid in your blood,” says Sabharwal.

 

4. Get to grips with creatinine

“One of the strongest correlations to living to 100 was levels of creatinine, which many people have not heard of,” says Modig. “Very few of the centenarians had a creatinine level above 125.”

What does this mean? Creatinine is a waste product of creatine, a chemical made by the body which supplies energy to muscles. Creatinine is removed from the body by the kidneys, so testing our levels can ascertain how well the kidneys are working. The albumin/creatinine ratio was used in the study, showing the number of milligrams of albumin (a protein in blood) for every gram of creatinine. For men, less than 17mg/g is deemed healthy, and for women, it’s less than 25mg/g.

 

What to do:

Research by American nephrologists has shown that eating large amounts of protein, in particular cooked red meat, can increase creatinine levels. Conversely, a 2014 study showed a link between increased fibre intake and significant reductions in creatinine. Staying hydrated and lowering your salt intake helps, too.

 

5. Boost your iron

An optimal ferritin blood level, which reveals the level of iron storage in the body, is vital to support cognitive function, the immune system and overall performance of the body.

 

In Britain, experts estimate that 3 per cent of men and 8 per cent of women have iron-deficiency anaemia, which can be treated with supplements, although these can have gastrointestinal side effects.

 

What to do:

Sabharwal recommends eating more plant-based foods containing iron “such as lentils, chickpeas, beans, cashew nuts, kale, raisins and fortified breakfast cereal”.

Increasing the iron we actually absorb from what we eat is equally important. “Vitamin C, vitamin A and beta carotene, found in carrots, sweet potatoes, spinach, red peppers and oranges, may help you absorb more,” he says.

 

6. Lower your liver enzymes

The study also linked lower levels of liver enzymes (proteins made by the organ) in the blood to living to 100 – unsurprisingly, since lower levels usually suggest a healthy liver, whereas higher levels indicate damage or disease.

 

Dr Paul Kooner, consultant hepatologist at London’s Princess Grace Hospital, says that liver blood tests are particularly important, since “liver disease rarely causes symptoms unless cirrhosis develops”.

 

What to do:

Eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly and limiting alcohol to within NHS guidelines of no more than 14 units per week is the best way to keep liver enzyme levels low. Drinking one cup of coffee a day has been proven to reduce the risk of dying from chronic liver disease by 15 per cent, so it’s worth incorporating into your routine.

 

Adding folate-rich foods such as dark green leafy vegetables to your diet can also lower liver enzyme levels. A 2016 study linked folate deficiency to increased alanine transaminase (ALT), a type of liver enzyme, and liver damage.

 

[pomchop]

2 minutes ago, pomchop said:

statins caused my calf muscles to twitch... a lot...

 

doc put me on ezetimibe few years ago and cholesterol now good numbers and no more muscle twitchs or bad side effects that i am aware of...

 

i am no doc but might be worth looking into with a doc

 

EZETIMIBE (ez ET i mibe) treats high cholesterol. It works by reducing the amount of cholesterol absorbed from the food you eat. This decreases the amount of bad cholesterol (such as LDL) in your blood.

and i still take a 10 mg statin every other day and ezetimibe every day..

 

Ezetimibe is not a statin medication, it is a cholesterol absorption inhibitor. Ezetimibe,fenofibrate and statins are cholesterol lowering medications. Ezetimibe can be taken together with statins or fenofibrate as their cholesterol lowering effects are complementary.

[mstevens]

3 hours ago, Mike Lister said:

And yet another. A sport physiotherapist who branched into diet and wrote books that he now promotes by saying things that will promote his book sales. THIS IS NOT MEDICNE, chumps. 

When you talk about medicine, be careful that you probably mean studies designed and financed by Big Pharma whose primary interest is in getting doctors to prescribe you drugs.......for life, thus increasing the size of their bank accounts.

[mstevens]

2 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Serious scientists do not post on YouTube, TikTok or the like. Those media simply do not lend themselves to proper presentation of science. 

 

Saying scientists don't post to YouTube is absolutely false.

 

On the issue we're discussing in this thread about cholesterol and whether one should take a statin, perhaps the name Aseem Malhotra rings a bell. He is one of the world's leading cardiologists and he has posted A LOT on YouTube all about cholesterol and how it relates to heart attacks along with whether to take statins or not (spoiler: in many cases he recommends consuming a low carb diet rather than taking statins.)

 

A quick search of cholesterol and heart attacks on YouTube brings up thousands of videos from medical doctors, any of whom can be Googled to check that they are real and currently practicing. I am not talking about the likes of Eric Berg or Sten Ekberg, but doctors from the likes of Harvard and Johns Hopkins. I'm not American but I gather these are respected medical facilities.

Edited November 28, 2023 by mstevens

[mstevens]

2 hours ago, Startmeup said:

What are healthy fats and a healthy diet?
If you asked me what a health fat is I would say saturated fats and a health diet is one predominantly of grass fed meat.

Real time tested nutrition. 

 

Your initial post didn't even quote your triglycerides.
This is arguable the most important factor.
Whats your Trig-HDL ratio? An important marker.

How is your Hb1ac i.e metabolic health? 

 

CRP Inflammation? 

 

How's your Vitamin B12 and Vit D? 

 

Oh it's in the reference range, doesn't mean much the reference ranges are not reliable in many cases.

 

Im not trying to confuse you but there are Many moving parts that need addressing in a whole body approach that will not be answered on these pages. Coronary calcium scan is a good idea. I had blood tests done within the last few months, there is 28 pages of results. You won't get in depth analysis like that from any doctor on the planet who is in the system on the "production line". It cost $A600 for an hour consult plus the cost of the tests and the same again to interpret the tests but If you're serious about your health and getting to the root cause of some issues Consult with a specialist, a proper specialist (choose wisely) not a production line physician, the best people are usually booked out long in advance (months) even at those prices. They read the studies so you don't have to, that's why you are paying them top dollar.

 

 

Bingo. This is really excellent information - and this is where the science is currently at.

 

100% agree that the Triglycerides / HDL ratio is a great indicator.