Statin Drugs...Inflammation Is Like Being On Fire!
One of my previous posts was about statin drugs. I discussed the science and various recent studies regarding the efficacy of them...or lack there of. I suggest going back to read it if you haven’t already.
This time I want to bring to light a couple of ideas of why statin drugs work....at the expense of your overall health. Yes, these drugs do lower LDL-cholesterol, and thus reduce your heart disease risk....but at what expense?
Your overall mortality goes up and you die of other diseases sooner. When heart disease deaths go down in primary prevention with the use of statin drugs, there are more deaths from other diseases. You trade your heart attack for cancer. The usual drug trial is just a few years, and cancer/infectious diseases/gastrointestinal diseases take longer to develop under the undesirable side effects of statin drugs. They don't’ show up until later.
And just why do statins work? Lowering your LDL-cholesterol? Nope! I don’t ascribe to the idea that LDL-c is trying to kill me and HDL-c is trying to save me. Evolution would not have allowed simultaneous events of one blood product trying to kill me and another trying to save me. You think LDL-c is actually made by your body in order to clog up your arteries??? And HDL-c is the “clean-up-crew”? C’mon...
Same thing about cholesterol....it’s not harmful, nor would the human body produce something that’s trying to kill me. Human biochemistry unfortunately is not that simple. Nor would your body work in such fashion. Cholesterol has particular benefits, albeit requirements, for your health; without it you cannot make any cell membranes, hormones, bile salts, or Vitamin D. Kinda important there...
Trials have failed repeatedly to associate the lowering of LDL-c and the reduction of cardiac events. ALL HAVE FAILED!
Read that again....
Here is some information from Dr. Kurt Harris, MD:
-Older trials have demonstrated all-cause mortality benefit to statins in secondary (you’ve already had a heart attack or coronary artery disease) prevention only in men...not women. More recent trials show an even less benefit to statin use even in secondary prevention.
-If you have neither had a heart attack, or coronary artery disease, there is no demonstrated mortality benefit to taking statins for primary prevention.
-Recent studies show statins actually work by decreasing inflammation in your body.
And this inflammation is the real problem here. The inside of your arteries, the endothelial membranes, become damaged from a poor diet, infection, alcohol, drug side-effects, trauma, and a few other lesser important issues. Your immune system tries to repair it with a cascade of chemicals, platelets, white cells, etc.
Arterial inflammation involves 4 important components and steps. And it begins with a substance called nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kB):
Platelets become all excited...they get sticky
Macrophages (white cells that are in your tissues) They eat things...pathogens and dead tissues
Monocytes (white cells that are in your blood...sort of immature macrophages) They also eat things, but stuff in your blood...damaged red blood cells, pathogens, and damaged endothelial lining of your arteries
Smooth muscle cell migration...i.e.. certain types of arterial muscle cells go to the injury site and enlarge, making the inside of your arteries smaller, closing down the inside
Higher levels of inflammation consistently predict coronary events, and survival after an event, goes down. Markers for inflammation include a blood test called hs-CRP...or Highly Sensitive C-Reactive Protein. This protein, produced by your liver in response to inflammation, is a very strong indicator of generalized inflammation. And when it is elevated, is a very good predictor of coronary events. As a matter of fact, if your CRP is in the upper third of normal levels, your risk is doubled. This increased risk level has been demonstrated in men, women, and the elderly.
Many good claims are being made to reduce your inflammation by consuming more antioxidants to combat the free radicals abundant in inflammation. Arteriosclerosis is an inflammatory issue, from beginning to end. The damage inside your arteries, and the resultant plaque buildup, is from a natural immune response to inflammation.
And this is why statins work....NOT from reducing cholesterol...but from reducing inflammation.
And this is why aspirin, an anti-inflammatory drug, shows benefit to reducing coronary events....NOT from reducing cholesterol...reducing inflammation.
And this is why a diet filled with plants, and certain vitamins/minerals (full of antioxidants) shows benefit to reducing coronary events....NOT from reducing cholesterol...reducing inflammation.
Your body knows how much cholesterol to make based upon your particular needs. Not some number (180, 200, 250, 350) pulled out of some pharmaceutical lab’s financial ass. Where did the “maximum total cholesterol” number come from? Why is it such an absolute number when most other lab values have ranges?
Elevated cholesterol is in response to inflammation. Especially oxidized cholesterol....the stuff involved in arterial plaque formation...from an inflammatory response. Cholesterol is sent there to “patch” the arterial damage and help mend the lesion. So if it is elevated, you probably have a large amount of inflammation going on.
Ranges of values....not absolute numbers...are what’s commonly stated in lab science.
Laboratory science looks at ranges of values, plus or minus, and even daily fluctuations, hour by hour, and values even change over a course of a month...and years based upon age of the patient.
That pharmaceutical lasso gets “bigger” every few years....now, 180 total cholesterol, in some clinics, is the maximum amount...and I have heard even 160 as well....hmmm, can anyone say “more patients”??? More drugs??? More $$$???
Well, guess what? You know what statins inhibit? The Grandaddy of all anti-inflammatories: nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kB)! That stops the initiation, and each element of the 4 steps of inflammation I previously mentioned. You stop that guy, and BINGO!...NO inflammation! And heart disease drops. Not from the lowering of LDL-c. You need LDL-c for your metabolic functions.
But wait a minute....statins also inhibit an energy pathway called the mevalonate pathway...the one involved with Co Q10...which makes your heart muscle strong, allows your liver to function, and kidneys to eliminate toxins. These high energy organs, and every other tissue in your body, rely upon Co Q10 to generate ATP (your energy currency in your cells). Nearly all (95%) of your energy produced is from the utilization of Co Q10 in the mitochondria of your cells. Statin drugs have been shown to cut the mitochondrial energy production by at least 50%.
Uh oh...”Houston, we have a problem here”...
THAT’S WHY STATINS HAVE MAJOR SIDE EFFECTS TO YOUR BODY!
AND THAT’S WHY ALL CAUSE MORTALITY IS HIGHER ON STATINS!!!
If you are on a statin drug, go read the drug insert that came with it when you started taking this drug....What? You don’t have it anymore? You threw it out before reading it??? SHAME ON YOU!
My professional advice is to call your dealer...oppps...doctor, and discuss these side effects I mentioned. Or google for your drug’s side effects and YOU decide what you want to do...NOT your doctor. If your doctor didn’t mention side effects after prescribing a statin drug, SHAME ON THEM!
All doctors are obligated to discus side effects of any prescribed treatment. That’s why in my clinic, and any other you have been to, you have to sign an “Informed Consent To Treatment” before anything is done to you. You are putting your health and life in our hands....you trust us....right???
Right....
Now, am I telling you to stop taking your prescribed pharmaceutical? Of course not. My discussion and comments are not to be construed or substituted as medical advice. Seek the consult with your doctor...a smart one who understands diet and nutrition in heart disease promulgation. We do not have a shortage of drugs in America, causing diseases to occur. Visit any drug store across the country, and you will be assured we do not have any drug shortages. There’s plenty to go around...and then some.
So if we have plenty of drugs, why do we still have diseases?
It’s not your fault. You have just followed the wrong advice...advice unfounded in science, biased financial interests, ignorance, and naiveté. The health results of our society stand as a symbol of medical failures. In my opinion it is mass genocide of our populace.
Here are some CDC Facts:
Every year, over 106,000 people die from adverse drug reactions. Sloppy prescription hand writing cause over 7,000 deaths/year. Preventable medication mistakes hurt 1.5 million/year. But only 6% are identified. If you are between 45-64, your mortality rate rose 90% in 5 years....even taking the drug correctly.
Most side effects are mistaken for new diseases which leads to more drugs...more side effects...more risks of death.
In 2001, Pfizer was the number one most profitable company of all Fortune 500 companies: 7.8 Billion Dollars. The medical industry is a “for profit disease industry” that can only survive if people get sick, and stay that way.
Please discuss this with your doctor. And you decide what you want to do.
In my opinion, diet and lifestyle are much more effective and safer at reducing inflammation than drugs. Toxic medications can never replace poor food choices and inferior lifestyles.
In my next newsletter I will address how food and some supplements can reduce inflammation. Stay Tuned For More Information!
As Always...Healthful Regards,
Dr. John
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