Statins

[oneboy3girls]

Serum cholesterol 6
Serum triglyceride 1.3
HDL 1.9
LDL 3.5
Ratio 3.2
Non high density lipoprotein 4.1
I am f 60 y

Maternal grandfather 71 y
Paternal Uncle early 50s.
Paternal cousin 64yr
All these 3 relatives died instantly from a heart attack.

I eat a very healthy diet. Nothing I could cut out without losing vital nutrients.
Mid healthy BMI
Exercise 1 hour most days.
TT ,non smoker.
Mild leaky heart valve.Under 2/3 year review.Okay though.

Consultant cardiologist wants me to get LDL less than 2.5

GP wants me to go on 20 mg statins.I don't want to . Worried about short and long time side effects.

Does anyone have experience of this ?
Would I be ridiculous not going on them?
Many thanks for this .

@oneboy3girls Would I be ridiculous not going on them?

Yes.

I'm the same age as you. I'm on statins on the advice of my GP as I have familial high cholesterol (sorry, not sure of levels) which refused to come down. I also have familial high blood pressure, also medicated. Other than that I'm fit and well.

I can report that I have experienced no side effects whatsoever from the statins, just reassurance that I am less likely to develop heart disease or have a stroke.

Would I be ridiculous not going on them?
Yes
What's your Qrisk score?
Mine was 15 so even though my cholestrol was low I agreed to statins.
I insisted on the lowest possible dose (10mg) which was still sufficient to reduce my cholestrol even further.
Side effects = zero. I take about 10 drugs and statins are the least bother.

I wasn't told what my Qrisk was.Would the surgery always have a figure from the consultant?The GP said that 10 mg was ineffective.It is interesting that it is working for you.Many thanks.

I am on statins. I don't know why I have high cholesterol but it was already high when I was 30. I was then fit and slim.

What side effects are you worried about?

Lookon the NHS app on your GP records for the qrisk. Or work it out yourself there's an online tool.
I'm fit and slim but have RA which bumps it up plus other things.
Don't know why they don't like giving 10mg. I was reluctant to take them so it was a compromise. My reluctance wasn't about fear of statins it was because I didn't want to add another drug to the very long list I already take.

I've had a stroke. I'm on Statins. I'm not even 50.

Yes, take them.

As well as reducing cholesterol my understanding is statins also stabilise any existing arterial plaque. I was reluctant to take them at first as already take medicines for an auto immune disorder but the research seemed solid. What's your reluctance about? Side effects?

Many thanks for all the helpful replies. My main concern is getting muscle/joint pain.I also hate interfering/tampering with my body.I will get a second medical opinion on the 10/20mg dose before I start taking them.

I know you said you eat a healthy diet, but it is often the culprit. Define healthy. How much meat, cheese, eggs, in other words, how much saturated fats are you eating?
Many have had success with the Portfolio diet to reduce cholesterol. In clinical trials it was as effective as statins.
With your family history and your numbers, I would listen to the cardiologist and beware of anyone saying cholesterol doesn't matter.

Looking up the Portfolio diet now.Thank you .

There are different types of statins

My mother can't get on with one type ( very tired , low iron, hair falling out in case you are interested ) so her doctor moved her to some other ones and she is now fine again

I'm finding this thread really interesting. I was offered statins and started taking them twice (atorvastatin) and on both occasions I felt peculiarly 'out of it' and light headed and stopped taking them. Has anyone else had this and what happened, please. So many people say that they're worth taking and I feel like I maybe should take them but I can't cope with feeling like this. It's impossible to speak with a GP at my practice - it's all online and they
Message to say that there's a prescription at the pharmacy - no chance to discuss options with the GP, otherwise I'd ask them.

When I was prescribed them my pharmacy phoned me after a week to check in side effects

I am on 40mg Atorvastatin.

I was also reluctant but had high bp and high cholesterol, so bit the bullet. I think 10 million people are on them in the uk, so tons of research is out there. Generally the big meta studies show few side effects.

The interesting one for me was the random trial where some were given statins and others not. Both groups reported about the same amount of joint pain, strong evidence of a nocebo effect (opposite of placebo).

I take coenzyme Q with them, which theoretically reduces side effects, but the actual evidence is very mixed as to whether it does.

I'm also on 40mg Atorvastatin. I have had no side effects at all in the 6 years I've been taking them, only good benefits. Take your drs advice.

Dizziness is a common side effect - 1 in 10

You need to report it and try a different type

I was told to take them at night to avoid the dizziness. I did get joint pains at first but they did subside .

I had a stroke in my 40ies.
Being on statins could have prevented that. I'd take the statins.

Side effects can be managed or you can take a different statin.
Side effects from a stroke may not be manageable at all.

Why risk it?

@Sweetdreams98 diet won't make any difference to people with familial high cholesterol. With the OP's family history it does sound like this is the case.

DH is on an 80mg dose because he has already had a stroke.

The NHS has become a joke, I have results close to yours OP, total cholesterol 6.5, last year it was 5.6. Other results within a point or two, LDL 3.7,HDL 2.2, triglycerides 1.1, this morning GP told me they were normal and not anything that required action. I'm 5 years younger than you. I'm fit, not overweight though I do have a pad of fat on my front. I'm furious.

No one follows guidelines, it's a postcode lottery, tired doctors, random treatment and still people will vote Tory.

https://www.qrisk.org/. easy enough to work out your q-risk. I think the guidance is to offer statins to anyone with a risk over 10%. As above statins stabilise plaques thereby reducing the risk of stroke, heart attack, PE, DVT as well as reduce cholesterol.

It's up to you to judge whether these benefits of statins outweigh the risks for you, but I would say it's hard to know if there will be any short-term side effects if you don't at least try them, and the long term risks seem pretty unproven.

1 I know people who were happier on rosuvastatin than atorvastatin. Ask GP and/or pharmacist about it.
2 Only person I know on 20mg (rosuvastatin) is a big guy. See if they will try 10mg, then test you and go to 20mg if 10mg is not enough.
3 I'm not familiar with the Portfolio Diet, but I know that fibre is more important than actual fat such as butter or full-fat cheese in controlling cholesterol.

Yes, muscle and joint pain is very unpleasant, and I hope you don't get it. But sometimes the body adjusts to medicines, and side effects subside. Please don't refuse statins if you need them, OP. A heart attack or stroke, as a PP said, is disastrous.

GP and pharmacist have said my cholesterol level would be much,much higher if it was familial.