Statin Drugs Side Effects

After taking statins for several years, my mother-in-law suddenly became very forgetful - repeating the same question four times in less than 15 minutes, forgetting that she had gone shopping or to the doctor that morning, etc. It was quite frightening for all of us. The battle to persuade my parents-in-law that she needed to stop taking the statins went on for months until, with the help of this book and "The Great Cholesterol Con" by Dr Malcolm Kendrick (don't get the other book by the same name: it's good but boring), they finally agreed that she should stop - just for a few days, mind you - this so-called "medication" (it's clearly just a poison by another name). Within 10 days of coming off simvastatin (aka Zocor), she was noticeably better, but we're still not sure she will recover completely. I believe these two books helped to save her life - and certainly the quality of her life. Graveline has since published 2 more books on statins, each one covering a different area of damage to body and mind, including DNA. P.S. I have now mentioned the memory loss aspect to several people I have come across who are taking statins and every one of them has suddenly realized they have been suffering recent memory losses too!

If you have a typical headache, you can count on aspirin, acetaminophen or ibuprofen to bring relief. If you have a stuffed nose and can't breathe, Nyquil or another decongestant will provide easier breathing for sleep. On the true preventive side of things, having a pregnant woman take folic acid and other supplements absolutely prevents neural tube defects. And making sure that growing children consume calcium and get sun exposure (or take Vitamin D) absolutely prevents rickets and other bone problems. So does taking a statin reliably prevent a heart attack? Absolutely not! The true statistics show that statins might lower the absolute risk of a cardiac event by just one or two percent over placebo. But the drugmakers use a statistical trick called "relative reduction in risk" to artificially boost this small difference, which is the way they've convinced their sales people and the prescribing physicians to believe in this giant scheme. If 7 percent of placebo users suffer a cardiac event over five years, while about 5 percent of statin users have one, that's an absolute reduction of just 2 percent over five years. But the drugmakers state publicly that it's a "relative reduction in risk" of almost 30 percent, which mathematically is correct. But it's not ethically correct, in my judgement. And for that one or two percent increased chance of avoiding a cardiac event, side effects occur in far greater percentages of users, and some of these side effects are severe and dangerous. Dr. Graveline's important book points this out in truthful, objective and honest ways. In fact, numerous studies have shown that statins do not increase mortality statistics. As Dr. Kauffman, Dr. Rosch, and the other reviewers have written, Dr. Graveline's book is a critically important one. It should be required reading for all prescribing physicians.

The best I have ever read about the side effects of Statin Drugs. Dr Graveline not only deals with the side effects. He also goes into the mode of action of the drugs and what happens on the cellular level. What cholesterol is and why it is so important to our well being. If fact too little cholesterol and we die. The book is written so non-medical consumers can easily understand what he is talking about. If you are taking a statin or a Doctor is trying to put you on a statin. THIS BOOK IS A MUST READ. It might just save your life or keep you from having severe debilitating side effects. I have taken the book and put together a power-point presentation to present to the Rotary Club. Everyone needs to be made aware of the danger of statin drugs. No one presents this any better than Dr Graveline.

This concise but comprehensive compendium not only lists the cornucopia of statin side effects, but also clearly explains the mechanisms of action responsible for their insidious side effects. Many of these dangerous complications, including cancer and neurodegenerative disorders that have been skillfully concealed or denied by statin manufacturers are just now beginning to surface. As Dr. Graveline emphasizes, in blocking cholesterol, which is essential for neuronal communication in the brain, statins also interfere with the synthesis of Coenzyme Q10, dolichols and NF-kB (nuclear factor kappa B), vital nutrients crucial for energy production, neuropeptide synthesis and proper immune system function. He also discusses the important role of homocysteine in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and the fallacies of current dogma that perpetuates the high fat diet high cholesterol heart attack myths. Equally valuable is a chapter devoted to statin alternatives that are certainly much safer and can be more effective for many, especially senior citizens and women of any age. The author, who is a physician with impressive credentials, became interested in this subject after suffering two episodes of global amnesia. His previous book, Lipitor, Thief of Memory, details this and similar memory problems experienced by many others. Since then, he has established a web site www.spacedoc.net that now includes reports of over 7,000 patients who have experienced documented statin side effect. As also emphasized, statins have been the best selling drugs ever for several years. This meaty book should be required reading for the many millions of patients that take them and the hundreds of thousands of physicians who prescribe them. Paul J. Rosch, MD, FACP President, The American Institute of Stress Clinical Professor of Medicine and Psychiatry New York Medical College Honorary Vice-President International Stress Management Association

This book focuses on the side-effects of statin drugs used "to lower cholesterol" or LDL-cholesterol. Its author has been an astronaut, aerospace medical research scientist, flight surgeon, family physician for at least 10 years, writer (including novels), and holder of a Masters degree in Public Health (MPH). Still, he enjoys being known as "Spacedoc". But what makes him super-qualified as author of Statin Drug Side Effects (SDSE) is that he has experienced two episodes of transient global amnesia himself after taking Lipitor(tm). This side-effect, shocking in its implications for drivers, pilots, etc., was temporary for Spacedoc, but not for everyone, as he reports on hundreds of cases. He also wrote that there are thousands of cases of less severe mental impairments due to Lipitor, and the equally dangerous statin drugs Zocor, Mevacor, Crestor and Baycol (now withdrawn). These and the less dangerous Pravachol and Lescol had been well-known for causing muscle pain, muscle weakness, muscle decomposition leading to kidney failure, peripheral neuropathy, digestive problems, chronic fatigue, sexual dysfunction, headache and skin rash. There are warnings that pregnant women or those are breast feeding should not take any statins. Most people accepted (or were not told) about these common side effects. And now Spacedoc exposes mental problems, heart failure and increased cancer rates! He spells out the biochemical pathways for these side effects. He gives case descriptions of many of the amnesia cases, including his own episodes. Spacedoc's experience as a novelist helped to make his book very readable. The first 112 pages are less technical than the final 44 pages of addendum, which include more detailed biochemical pathways for the brain damage, immune system damage, and heart damage from statin drugs. A final 10 pages is a brief summary of the whole. For busy physicians, these 44 pages alone are worth the price of the book. SDSE is carefully referenced, mostly to medical journals, with numbered citations (the best way). There is no index. While I disagree with a half dozen narrow aspects of the work, Spacedoc's credentials are far better than mine, and the main messages are solid. His tone is very civil, even in lamenting the baseless demonization of cholesterol. Other authors have referred to this as a fraud, myth, conspiracy and con. Spacedoc gives example after example of how common and necessary cholesterol, including LDL-cholesterol, really is in your body. Spacedoc has explained that the whole dogma of lowering cholesterol or LDL-cholesterol has no scientific basis, despite $billions of TV advertising and medical claims based on clinical trials. Flaws in trial design and reporting are explained very well. Spacedoc has shown that the low-fat diets promoted by the avaricious or ignorant for 50 years have failed, as you can see from the number of fat people around you. Diets that will reverse obesity and type 2 diabetes are given. Spaced