If you have high cholesterol levels, one of the first recommendations your doctor probably gave you was to diet and work out physically.
But then he/she probably prescribed you the most common cholesterol lowering drugs – Statins – unknowingly that all the workout you’d do after that would be mostly useless.
Or so it seems, according to a disturbing study featured in today’s article.
In a 12- week study conducted at the University of Missouri on participants who had a history of health markers indicating metabolic disorders such as obesity, high cholesterol and other issues, researchers wanted to see the effects of combining exercise to a treatment plan using statin drugs.
Research has shown that increasing physical activity can reduce the risk of someone with high cholesterol of having a heart attack by more than 50%. It also shows that statin drugs can in some cases be helpful in reducing high cholesterol, despite the dangerous side effects.
[adrotate group=”5″]The expectation was that if statins ‘improved’ health and exercise does too, that applying both as part of a treatment plan would have an even bigger impact.
The results were not only NOT what the researchers expected, but they were also disturbing.
The participants in the study were separated into two groups. In one, the participants were prescribed 40mg of a popular statin drug. In the other, no drugs were taken. Both groups were assigned a supervised regimen of exercise 5 days a week.
Muscle biopsies and other health indicators were taken at the beginning and the end of the study.
The exercise-only group saw what researchers considered a significant improvement in muscle health- over 10% on average.
However, the group taking the drugs saw a less than 1% improvement, despite being on a similar diet and exercising at the same levels.
This indicates that the improvements that could be realized through exercise are all but undone when statin drugs are introduced into the body.
Instead of dangerous statin drugs, we recommend using simple lifestyle changes to get your cholesterol level under control.
But first, please share your thoughts below.
One of the side effects of all statin drugs is that it may be "muscle wasting" and can cause cramps. I took a statin for about two weeks and I got cramps and felt as though I was losing my strength.
I have been taking 4 capsules a day of Red Yeast Rice for 9 months. This is what traditional Chinese doctors prescribe for their patients who have high cholesterol. My total cholesterol dropped from 315 to 265 in 6 months. I am still taking it and I am still in great shape for a 67 years old.
Again Dr. Carey Reams (1903-1985) was way ahead of his time. His research found that cholesterol was not the cause of heart disease or even related. Arteries build up cholesterol containing plaque because of the irritation that excess salt in the body causes. Reduce the excess salt in the body by systematically drinking distilled water and there is no plaque in the arteries, regardless of the blood cholesterol readings. My 60+ year old clean arteries (even though I have had high cholesterol for over 20 years) is proof of this (cardiac and carotid ultrasound results).
Thanks for your comment Gary. I also lowered my cholesterol by 40 points (last time I checked…it could be lower now) using Red Yeast Rice. I was concerned about muscle wasting and other possible side effects. Have you done any other research?
I have ordered some pamphlets and a monthly newsletter on traditional Chinese medicine. I also have high blood pressure. (145 over 95) I am taking a drug for that. I would like to get off all drugs, not just the statin drugs.
I am 77. The Rice sounds worth trying. My BP is usually from 155 to 170 and the other one usually about 85 to 95. the cholesterol has always been high. My MD subscribed water pills for BP.. I took one for 2 days and suddenly had a pain in left arm and chest which I hadn't had for a long time.. and said to myself THATS ENOUGH OF THEM CRITTERS. My preference is no pharmaceuticals because every time I take one for sleep or whatever, I feel terrible next day. I'd rather die from NATURAL causes. I believe I do not have heart disease anyway. I think fear and worry is the biggest killer. I have been working on eliminating the duality-concept of disease/health and replace it with thoughts of Well-being.
My colesteral was above 200. I started eating four pineapple chunks from Dole cans per day. It went down below 200 for years.You can get fresh from grocery stores.