Cholesterol Medicines Could Be Causing More Problems Than They Solve

Medical science is amazing. If you think of how far we have come in the science of saving lives and increasing a better quality of life for all of us over the past thirty or forty years it's pretty mind boggling.

The problem with any science is that a solution that works today might become the problem tomorrow. One Tulane University researcher is raising that question about a popular treatment for cholesterol and heart disease.

Dr. Eckhard Alt who is director of cardiovascular research for Tulane is suggesting that drugs classified as statins could be causing other problems. Problems that could be greater than the issues they are prescribed to treat. Among those issues are memory loss, an increase risk for diabetes, and muscle problems.

Especially the memory loss has been a long time not associated with statins but more and more patients realized their forgetfulness may be noted to statins.

Dr. Alt says the concern with statins has to do with how the medicine affects stem cells. Everyone has stem cells in their body. It's these cells that do the repair and regrowth of injured or damaged tissue. It is believed that statins prevent stem cells from doing what they were created to do.

The worse side effect is its effect on muscle, the dying of the muscles and muscle pain, which even provoked the disappearance of some statins from the market.

Dr. Alt is suggesting that anyone who is currently taking statins such as Lipitor, Crestor, Vytorin, Zocor, or any of the other well publicized statin medications should have a talk with their doctor.  Dr. Alt's comments were reported in a story published by the Louisiana Radio Network. 

Please note this article is intended to inform and not diagnose. Please visit with your medical professional before starting or stopping any prescribed medications.