Statin are one of the most widely prescribed medications out there. They are used to lower high cholesterol levels. If you are on it, you should take a look at this CBC article and video. Researchers are starting to question its risks and benefits for cardiovascular disease prevention. It seems to help those who have had a heart attack, but not so much for those who have yet to have any health problems. After about 5 yrs of use, it seems to reduce risk by about one percent. But one also has to weigh that against the possible side effects such as kidney disease, muscle pain, type 2 diabetes, etc.
Luckily, if you read my previous blog post about how effective naturopathic medicine is for cardiovascular disease, you will find that there are much more effective treatment strategies out there.
FYI:
Speaking of statins, make sure that you're not mixing it with any macrolide antibiotics. These are common antibiotics such as clarithromycin & erythromycin. It could lead to a number of nasty side effects, namely kidney and muscle damage. See the article below for more information.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/story/2013/06/17/statin-antibiotic-interaction.html
Yours in Health,
Ian Koo, ND
Visit us on our Facebook page!
www.NaturopathicEssentials.com
"The care you want, the health you need."
Showing posts with label statins. Show all posts
Showing posts with label statins. Show all posts
Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease using Naturopathic Therapies vs. Conventional Treatment
I didn't think this would happen for at least a decade more, but it did. The Canadian Medical Association's Journal (CMAJ) published a journal study comparing the treatment of Canada Post workers in Edmonton, Toronto & Vancouver using conventional treatment of cardiovascular disease versus naturopathic treatment.
And lo and behold, naturopathic treatment was more successful in reducing the 10 year risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality risk. In addition, the patients who were treated by a naturopathic doctor reduced costs to the health care system and the employer (Canada Post) by a whopping $1025 in the first year alone.
The study also analyzed naturopathic care vs. statins. Statins are a class of medication used to lower cholesterol and have been shown to decrease mortality risks. Naturopathic care resulted in a 2 fold improvement in benefit + a 2 fold reduction in cost. Therefore, that means naturopathic care was 4x more cost effective.
Dr. Brian Goldman, MD who hosts a show on CBC radio and is an emergency room doctor at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto discusses this study and naturopathic medicine in this interview. Take some time to listen to it and you'll be surprised at how positive he is regarding naturopathic medicine's role in Ontario and Canada's health care system.
http://www.cbc.ca/player/Radio/Local+Shows/Saskatchewan/ID/2382402569/
Yours in Health,
Ian Koo, ND
Visit us on our Facebook page!
www.NaturopathicEssentials.com
"The care you want, the health you need."
And lo and behold, naturopathic treatment was more successful in reducing the 10 year risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality risk. In addition, the patients who were treated by a naturopathic doctor reduced costs to the health care system and the employer (Canada Post) by a whopping $1025 in the first year alone.
The study also analyzed naturopathic care vs. statins. Statins are a class of medication used to lower cholesterol and have been shown to decrease mortality risks. Naturopathic care resulted in a 2 fold improvement in benefit + a 2 fold reduction in cost. Therefore, that means naturopathic care was 4x more cost effective.
Dr. Brian Goldman, MD who hosts a show on CBC radio and is an emergency room doctor at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto discusses this study and naturopathic medicine in this interview. Take some time to listen to it and you'll be surprised at how positive he is regarding naturopathic medicine's role in Ontario and Canada's health care system.
http://www.cbc.ca/player/Radio/Local+Shows/Saskatchewan/ID/2382402569/
Yours in Health,
Ian Koo, ND
Visit us on our Facebook page!
www.NaturopathicEssentials.com
"The care you want, the health you need."
Do you know anyone on high dose Statin medications with high blood sugar? You'll want to read further.
Researchers from the University of Glasgow report in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA 2011; 305:2556-2564) that people on high doses of statin medications increases the risk of diabetes by 12%. Statin drugs are often prescribed for those who have high cholesterol and are thus at an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases.
This new report follows another study published last year in the Lancet, another well regarded science journal.
(Sattar N, Preiss D, Murray HM, et al. Statins and risk of incident diabetes: a collaborative meta-analysis of randomized statins trials. Lancet 2010; 375:735-742)
Researchers conclude that it is prudent to monitor ones' blood glucose levels if you are on statin therapy. It should be noted that the authors still believe that benefits of statin therapy (ie. prevention of cardiovascular events) outweighs the cons (ie. diabetes). This is a bit of a contradiction because having diabetes puts one in the high risk category of getting a cardiovascular event.
Hopefully some of you have seen your cholesterol numbers from your blood work and may have noticed a chart/guideline like the one below. This chart uses American numbers, but for the purpose of this explanation, it doesn't matter. The way we are taught to treat patients for high cholesterol is to first assess which category of risk a patients fall in. For example, if you smoke, have a history of cardiovascular events or have diabetes, you are automatically classified as a "high risk individual". So then you are put on statins to decrease your risks if you do not meet the cholesterol target guidelines which are also shown on the chart.
So here's what I see as the big picture:
High risk individuals => Drug therapy (statins) => Some people are at increased risk of developing diabetes => Diabetes increases ones risk of having cardiovascular problems => May need another drug to treat the high blood sugar (?)
So what should you be doing if you're on statins?
1. Monitor your blood sugar, especially if you're on high doses of the drugs.
2. Make LIFESTYLE changes! Yes, there are natural supplements that can lower your cholesterol, but the truth is, if you don't exercise, eat right and get adequate sleep, you won't have the foundation required to go off whatever medications you are on.
The guidelines (American figures), based on the 10-year risk of a heart attack, are summarized in the table below.
Have a fantastic, fun-filled summer everyone!
Yours in Health,
Ian Koo, ND
Visit us on our new Facebook page!
www.NaturopathicEssentials.com
"The care you want, the health you need."
This new report follows another study published last year in the Lancet, another well regarded science journal.
(Sattar N, Preiss D, Murray HM, et al. Statins and risk of incident diabetes: a collaborative meta-analysis of randomized statins trials. Lancet 2010; 375:735-742)
Researchers conclude that it is prudent to monitor ones' blood glucose levels if you are on statin therapy. It should be noted that the authors still believe that benefits of statin therapy (ie. prevention of cardiovascular events) outweighs the cons (ie. diabetes). This is a bit of a contradiction because having diabetes puts one in the high risk category of getting a cardiovascular event.
Hopefully some of you have seen your cholesterol numbers from your blood work and may have noticed a chart/guideline like the one below. This chart uses American numbers, but for the purpose of this explanation, it doesn't matter. The way we are taught to treat patients for high cholesterol is to first assess which category of risk a patients fall in. For example, if you smoke, have a history of cardiovascular events or have diabetes, you are automatically classified as a "high risk individual". So then you are put on statins to decrease your risks if you do not meet the cholesterol target guidelines which are also shown on the chart.
So here's what I see as the big picture:
High risk individuals => Drug therapy (statins) => Some people are at increased risk of developing diabetes => Diabetes increases ones risk of having cardiovascular problems => May need another drug to treat the high blood sugar (?)
So what should you be doing if you're on statins?
1. Monitor your blood sugar, especially if you're on high doses of the drugs.
2. Make LIFESTYLE changes! Yes, there are natural supplements that can lower your cholesterol, but the truth is, if you don't exercise, eat right and get adequate sleep, you won't have the foundation required to go off whatever medications you are on.
The guidelines (American figures), based on the 10-year risk of a heart attack, are summarized in the table below.
| ATP III LDL-Cholesterol Goals and Cutpoints for Therapeutic Lifestyle Changes (TLC) and Drug Therapy in Different Risk Categories | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Risk Category | LDL-Cholesterol Goal | Initiate TLC | Consider Drug Therapy |
| High risk: CHD* or CHD risk equivalents† (10-year risk >20%) | <100 mg/dL (optional goal: <70 mg/dL)|| | >=100 mg/dL# | >=100 mg/dL†† (<100 mg/dL: consider drug options)** |
| Moderately high risk: 2+ risk factors‡ (10-year risk 10% to 20%) | <130 mg/dL¶ | >=130 mg/dL# | >=130 mg/dL 100–129 mg/dL; consider drug options)‡‡ |
| Moderate risk: 2+ risk factors‡ (10-year risk <10%) | <130 mg/dL | >=130 mg/dL | >=160 mg/dL |
| Lower risk: 0–1 risk factor§ | <160 mg/dL | >=160 mg/dL | >=190 mg/dL (160–189 mg/dL: LDL-lowering drug optional) |
Have a fantastic, fun-filled summer everyone!
Yours in Health,
Ian Koo, ND
Visit us on our new Facebook page!
www.NaturopathicEssentials.com
"The care you want, the health you need."
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