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all good suggestions. when i first got the bad news it was around 3-4 years ago. the doc scared the crap out of me and i went on the diet to end all diets. i also binged on oatmeal and jogged several days a week. now that did put me in the safe range but after a while i just couldnt take the diet anymore. i had to back off and binge on pizza and wings for a bit. one thing led to another and i stopped the diet/jogging all together. my next blood test showed my trigs at 600. so i know that the diet will work if i stick to it. now with adding lovasa especially. i just hate dieting!
Well you know you CAN do it. But you need to find a way to make it live-able. I will use myself as an example. I hate trying to eat purely 100% of the time. But I had to fix how I ate for weight reasons. Once I got the weight under control and started feeling those "i want wings" feelings I looked at how I could have those wings without being as damaging as before. For me it was a quantity and frequency thing that had to change. And so I had a reasonable amount of not so healthy food. Eventually it got to the point where I didn't feel I wanted them as much or was craving healthy alternatives. It just naturally happened. And when I did want them I knew the amount I could have without damaging my progress. Maybe try that way of thinking?
I also tried to look for healthier alternatives of whatever I liked. And had fun playing kitchen scientist. LOL
I will add my two cent's,allergic to statins,have had open heart surgery due to cholestrol.I am not obese nor overweight.The doctors have tried all,problem goes back many years.Reading's present 220 and 168.I have been now taking Crestor Monday and Thursday,5mg.
In rehab last Dec this was tried and had to quit,the difference now is CO Q-10,200 mg which works,no muscle ache or debilitation.Mayo say's the statin depletes this chemical from liver causing problem in muscles.Doctor said try it.
I read that some people who have taken Lipitor can get a strange and fortunately rare type of amnesia where you can actually lose your memory for about 12 hours and go about their business but have absolutely no memory of what happened during that time. That would terrify me and I'd rather take my chances with high cholesterol. Besides I don't trust the party line--smells too much like money to me. Your body and brain both produce cholesterol and it's a necessary substance.
Also just because a small minority of researchers question the link? That doesn't change my mind at all. Had a relative in the 1800's who gave quinine to the settlers to control the malaria in the area and he was denounced by the city docs as a quack.
Besides, my mother took Lipitor for years and got to the point where she couldn't walk and began showing signs of dementia during that time. Sure, you can talk me into taking Lipitor.
Yes there are risks with Lipitor, just as there are with almost every drug.
So you sound like a fear driven person instead of data driven person. YOu have "heard of" some people who lost their memory for 12 hours. Yet millions of people have taken Lipitor for almost two decades, with reams of data that show reduced risk of cardiovascular disease. And your mother - do you know that her dementia had anything to do with Lipitor? Or that she couldn't walk because of Lipitor? Perhaps if she hadn't taken Lipitor she might have suffered a fatal heart attack years before she suffered from these other issues.
Make your own choices. But I suggest you prioritize scientific results instead of fear.
Yes there are risks with Lipitor, just as there are with almost every drug.
So you sound like a fear driven person instead of data driven person. YOu have "heard of" some people who lost their memory for 12 hours. Yet millions of people have taken Lipitor for almost two decades, with reams of data that show reduced risk of cardiovascular disease. And your mother - do you know that her dementia had anything to do with Lipitor? Or that she couldn't walk because of Lipitor? Perhaps if she hadn't taken Lipitor she might have suffered a fatal heart attack years before she suffered from these other issues.
Make your own choices. But I suggest you prioritize scientific results instead of fear.
Might be reams of data showing it reduced cholestrol but is there really data showing that it actually reduced heart attacks? I think their advertising even states that link doesn't exist. Probably more effective to just take an aspirin and drink a glass of red wine every day. Even better: exercise, maintain normal weight, limit sugar consumption and don't smoke.
Yes there are risks with Lipitor, just as there are with almost every drug.
So you sound like a fear driven person instead of data driven person. YOu have "heard of" some people who lost their memory for 12 hours. Yet millions of people have taken Lipitor for almost two decades, with reams of data that show reduced risk of cardiovascular disease. And your mother - do you know that her dementia had anything to do with Lipitor? Or that she couldn't walk because of Lipitor? Perhaps if she hadn't taken Lipitor she might have suffered a fatal heart attack years before she suffered from these other issues.
Make your own choices. But I suggest you prioritize scientific results instead of fear.
Fear driven. Snort. You're talking to the lady who made a round-the-world trip for the better part of a year and camped most of the way and even, gasp, stayed in some muslim countries and petted tigers in Thailand. Sure, I'm fear driven.
There is risk and then there is unnecessary risk and I see lipitor as part of the latter. The muscle weakening effects of statin drugs is a well known side effect and went away after mom stopped taking them. But you're right--the brain problems could have been something else, like the tylenol pm that she was also taking for years and I have now found out may also have a negative effect on the brain--a double whammy as it were. No triple--double whammy from the tylenol and the sleep aid in it, and then the lipitor also. The brain produces the cholesterol that it needs and when you slow or stop your body's production of cholesterol you're also stopping it in your brain. Why would your body produce a substance in such abundance that is not needed? Is it just possible that science does not have a complete understanding of the role that it plays in your body? That research wasn't popular for years b/c it wasn't "sexy" but I think they'll learn more about it in years to come.
And then I find out that a major antioxidant that is also produced by your body is suppressed by statin drugs--co-Q-10. We'll call it collateral damage. Do the docs tell you that you should replace this with supplements when they prescribe the lipitor? Turns out that most don't. I'd be curious to know the percentage that do. Lord knows how many body processes that powers. I can grant that they didn't know about this at first, but now it is getting better known--known even by idiots like me but still they don't tell you this.
Yes, and the tylenol suppresses the glutathione production--another very important anti-oxidant. One weighs the risk versus benefit and I decided that the risks were not worth it.
I really am not trying to come off as a know-it-all. I know that I don't know much about it, but I fear sometimes that science and industry gets hold of a partial bit of the picture and then fills in the rest with profits. The fact is that statin drugs have made the hugest profit for the pharmaceutical industry of any other drug. I also know that I've had my own health harmed by substances that have been "proven" by data to be perfectly safe. I'd rather take CAVA's advice.
Fear driven. Snort. You're talking to the lady who made a round-the-world trip for the better part of a year and camped most of the way and even, gasp, stayed in some muslim countries and petted tigers in Thailand. Sure, I'm fear driven.
There is risk and then there is unnecessary risk and I see lipitor as part of the latter. The muscle weakening effects of statin drugs is a well known side effect and went away after mom stopped taking them. But you're right--the brain problems could have been something else, like the tylenol pm that she was also taking for years and I have now found out may also have a negative effect on the brain--a double whammy as it were. No triple--double whammy from the tylenol and the sleep aid in it, and then the lipitor also. The brain produces the cholesterol that it needs and when you slow or stop your body's production of cholesterol you're also stopping it in your brain. Why would your body produce a substance in such abundance that is not needed? Is it just possible that science does not have a complete understanding of the role that it plays in your body? That research wasn't popular for years b/c it wasn't "sexy" but I think they'll learn more about it in years to come.
And then I find out that a major antioxidant that is also produced by your body is suppressed by statin drugs--co-Q-10. We'll call it collateral damage. Do the docs tell you that you should replace this with supplements when they prescribe the lipitor? Turns out that most don't. I'd be curious to know the percentage that do. Lord knows how many body processes that powers. I can grant that they didn't know about this at first, but now it is getting better known--known even by idiots like me but still they don't tell you this.
Yes, and the tylenol suppresses the glutathione production--another very important anti-oxidant. One weighs the risk versus benefit and I decided that the risks were not worth it.
I really am not trying to come off as a know-it-all. I know that I don't know much about it, but I fear sometimes that science and industry gets hold of a partial bit of the picture and then fills in the rest with profits. The fact is that statin drugs have made the hugest profit for the pharmaceutical industry of any other drug. I also know that I've had my own health harmed by substances that have been "proven" by data to be perfectly safe. I'd rather take CAVA's advice.
Of course doctors and scientists don't understand all of is. I'm not defending Lipitor per se and have nothing to do with pharma by the way. But millions and millions of people take it, and have for almost 20 years.
But choosing not to take a drug like Lipitor should not be based on the experience of one relative. For most Americans, the small risk of joint pain probably outweighs the risk of not addressing cholesterol. Maybe with your mother - the risk balance is different. But would you tell me not to take Lipitor because of what your mother's experience was?
I take Lipitor. I am over 50, an athlete (swimmer), and have not experienced any side effects whatsoever. No joint pain (at least none that aren't related to age and prior injuries). I don't take Tylenol. Almost never any sleep aids. I also have strong cardiovascular fitness. I drink red wine. And good beer. And still like to eat meat (though less than I used to). I'm looking forward to Lipitor going generic soon - which should make it much less expensive.
thats what i usually need to work on. greatly lowering trigs. my LDL is only a little over and my HDL is only alittle under. jogging is key if i can get my lazy ass to do it more often.
Add a glass or two of red wine every day to your plan, it will boost your HDL.
But choosing not to take a drug like Lipitor should not be based on the experience of one relative. For most Americans, the small risk of joint pain probably outweighs the risk of not addressing cholesterol. Maybe with your mother - the risk balance is different. But would you tell me not to take Lipitor because of what your mother's experience was?
No, I would never tell anyone not to take Lipitor or anything else that the doc recommends b/c I'm not a doctor. I will only offer my own experience and that of my family and tell them why I won't. Of course I'm not basing this off the experience of one relative--though a relative as close as my mother would be a good one to go by since we are related and have many of the same genes. I actually have spoken with quite a number of people, some relatives, who've had the same side effect of muscles getting so painful that they couldn't get up and go like they could before and mom got so bad that she couldn't even walk her dog and we had to question how it is that a med that makes it so you can't exercise anymore can be good for your heart. She went off the lipitor in disgust and went back to walking the dog, and has had no problems with her heart other than that her total cholesterol is up around 250 and her HDL/LDL ratios ain't so great. She is 76 now and falling into alzheimer's pretty quickly at this point and heart problems are the least of our worries. I certainly believe that it's more than possible that the fact that her symptoms of dementia began while she was on lipitor could be very much due to coincidence but I also know that there have been some documented side effects on the brain from statins. It could be body chemistry--she did horrible with aricept as well--got almost suicidal within days.
Now I have also read that alzheimer's is a higher risk for folks with high cholesterol but there is no evidence that statin drugs can lower your risk for dementia, perhaps b/c your brain produces it. I know some scientists are starting to believe that inflammation may be a much bigger risk factor for heart disease and alzheimer's and that cholesterol is the the messenger that's getting blamed, b/c it is the repair substance for the inflamed arteries and brain. I'll certainly be keeping my eye out for developments on that and have been adding turmeric into my diet. I also take the B complex to keep my homocysteine down. I know that a high sugar diet is a huge risk factor for both of these diseases so I'm doing my heroic best to conquer the sweet tooth.
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Originally Posted by Just1Lion
anyone have success lowering triglycerides and cholesterol without taking statins such as lipitor? I am trying to avoid taking this type of medication. i am genetically prone to having high trigs and cholesterol. the doc really wants to put me on some type of med but im not into it just yet. they suggesetd niaspan at one point, than trilipix. we compromised and i am currently taking Lovasa (4 per day) and no flush niacin (1 per day). my trigs were around 600 before the Lovasa, down to around 300 after Lovasa. i recently added the Niacin. i try to jog a couple times per week.
I can not say this is a solution for anyone else with high triglycerides, I know that taking fish oil omega-3 seems to work for me, this was recommended for me by a nurse assistance at the dr. office, my cholesterol doesn't seem to be any to high, since after my apptments, they say my numbers are good. I take over the counter fish oil omega-3. Could be something worth checking into to find out if it is for you, can't hurt to ask.
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