I just had my yearly physical including blood work. This past year my husband's schedule was SO rickety that I'd been feeding both of rather unhealthy (though fun) meals that used a lot of cheese). Not surprisingly, his (he was already on a statin drug) cholesterol numbers rose and for the first time my own doctor prescribed a statin drug for me as well because after stopping HRT AND all the cheese etc. my numbers got very high.

Out of concern for tolerance, she had me start with only half the prescribed dose (she had me cut the pill in half) and told me to report immediately any unusual problems.

The first dose did nothing bad that I could note.

The second dose woke me with a short event of nausea only during the night. But the next day I was having problems breathing.

The third dose: Extreme nausea that continued through the night and next day, stomach pain, pain in both arms, then in my calves, feet, head pain and worse difficulty breathing.

The third day I was too ill to do anything. I could barely move and was terrified to eat.

I took nothing last night and will have to let my doctor know of course.

I know I need to get the numbers down, both my own and my husband's through diet.

Has anyone else had adverse effects from statins? WHat did your doctor prescribe instead?

I've picked up a natural pill: Cholest Off by Nature Made and also garlic but haven't taken anything and won't until I talk with my doctor (my husband also felt that I'd better let my body heal at least a night)

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!

I've never had a problem with any statins. I decided to go off of them and try a more natural route about six months ago, and the result was devastating. My combined cholesterol was 321. My young doctor, who was very supportive of my decision to try the natural remedy, convinced me to go back on the statins. He told me that when someone enters the hospital with a heart attack, they give mega doses of statins on the spot and it helps. To make a long story short, I went back on the statins (a mega dose as he was alarmed by my numbers) and my total cholesterol went down to 137.

There are also two drugs out on the market that are not statins, but prevent absorption of fats into your system. One is Zetia, which can cause diarrhea, and I forget the name of the other one, but it starts with a C, which makes you constipated. I tried the one with the C, and it didn't help me. My choesterol problems are hereditary and are not so influenced by what I eat. So to answer your question, I never had a problem with the statins, I know they have horrible side effects, but for me, it's the only thing I can do.

Sorry, I wasn't much help!

Have you looked at Revival Soy? One of its many benefits is stabilizing cholesterol levels -

Here is the link -
http://www.power-surge.com/revival1.htm

I have read that niacin can lower cholesterol--best to take the "no flush" kind.

They used to say that Red Yeast Rice worked--but the government decided it was regulable because it had lovastatin in it--so now the OTC stuff can't have that in it and isn't effective anymore.

I also happened upon a website about a year ago that was a support board for people who had suffered terrible side effects from statins--one of the biggies being muscle weakness. They had come upon a regimen to overcome the damage that included taking COQ10. The way I found the site was researching COQ10 before I decided whether or not to try it. So, you're not alone in adverse side effects. Anyway, you might ask your doctor about niacin--it's a B vitamin. I'm not sure of the dosage but I'm sure he/she would know.

Just curious--did the doctor think stopping the HRT affected your cholesterol levels--or is he just blaming heredity and diet? I think I've also read that other factors can affect cholesterol levels--like stress--or is that something else?

I hope your doctor can find a solution for you and that you feel better soon.

Miss Tibbs

Yes, she told me that when you stop HRT your cholesterol levels rise considerably. I also don't have a gall bladder so levels automatically rise without it (mine hadn't been working for a very long time because of extreme infection which also affected my liver and part of my liver had to be removed when my gall bladder was (no, I did not have stones...it was entirely impacted with sand)

I also researched some other sites discussing statins and one fellow's symptoms were so bad that he had to decide between talking and breathing since he could no longer do both. The problem with muscle weakness is that other muscles are affected sometimes irrevocably. The liver can be damaged beyond repair.

I think you were wise to discontinue the statin you were taking and wait until you talk to your doctor before proceeding. Remind her of your liver--just in case she didn't remember to take that into consideration.

Since your cholesterol did better on HRT--is it possible you could start it back up? It seems as though you were doing okay until you got off HRT and started eating more cheese. Perhaps you could control it with just diet if you made it a priority--regardless of your husband's schedule--to make cheeseless dinners?

I sure hope you find a solution soon--something short of getting to the point where you have to choose between breathing and speaking, liver damage, or high cholesterol. That's scary that sometimes the muscle weakness can't be undone. This is boiling down to a "quality of life" issue, in my opinion. Perhaps you should wear a bracelet warning of your reaction since one of the other posters said her doctor told her they give mega doses of statins to heart attack victims.

Miss Tibbs

Dear Friends,
Just like Buttercup, I have high cholesterol levels (282). The Dr. Suggested diet and exercise. Through a CT Scan they found a fatty liver. I have an appointment with my Dr this coming Tuesday. I want to address the cholesterol and maybe taking medication for it if needed. The only thing I know about cholesterol medications is what I see in the commercials. They say If you have liver problems you can't take this or that medication. Is a fatty liver consider serious enough not to take this medications? and if so what is the choice for us with liver issues? Is statin safe? Buttercup. Since I can't offer you any advice maybe you can offer me some?

Montana1

If your liver is funtioning normally you should be abe to take these drugs but obviously you need to consult your specialist first. People of normal weight can also have fatty liver but a low fat diet willl help.

I called and also sent along a written message to my doctor's office yesterday then talked with my doctor yesterday evening.

NOT everyone can take statins. There are some people, she advised me, whose physiologies cannot tolerate them at all and alternatives then must be considered. To continue with then with the kinds of symptoms I was displaying can be very dangerous and in some cases (this depends on the severity of the adverse effects NOT simply side effects) it can lead to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and even death.

My doctor is going with my own decision to try some serious alternatives which actually began a couple days ago.

Cholest Off by Nature Made

Soy milk
Garlic
Promise Activ shots and margarine - (made up of omega-3 ALA, omega-6* and vitamin E)
NO sugar (or at minimum)
NO white flour products
Tons of very green vegetables
raw fruits: apples, peaches and berries
red wine at night

I am continuing with Propel with calcium

I am 5 feet tall and at the doctor (with clothes on) I weighed 129 so I need to drop almost 30 pounds (this means I need to get below ideal weight)

The Promise Activ is way too delicious and it's tempting to just keep opening a new shot and having more LOL!!!

The Cholest Off was strangling me yesterday so I was cutting the pills in half and trying to swallow them that way but they were too big so this morning I crushed them all up in a cup and poured my Propel in and determined I would just hurl it down. I was pleasantly surprised that I could ONLY taste the Propel! Then there was grit at the bottom so I just started chewing it and discovered that those dumb pills have no flavor at all so YEA!!!

In about 2 months my doctor wants the fasting blood tests done again to see if my numbers have dropped. If not, she will try some other alternatives.

Buttercup: Have you looked into Policosanol? It's made from raw sugar cane and available at most health food and vitamin stores. I'm one of those weird people...my total cholesterol is 300, but my HDL is very high and my triglyercides are very low. Overall, my risk of heart disease is lower than average. My doctor thinks it's because I exercise a lot and have taken fish oil for years. At this point, he doesn't want me on any drugs. My husband, however, is a different story. High cholesterol, low HDL, high triglyercides. He started taking the policosanol and his cholesterol dropped 40 points in 3 weeks...

You know, I read about this product and was intrigued so I'm glad you brought it to my attention again!!! YES, I'm going to get it AND the fish oils you take. Dropping 40 points in 3 weeks is astonishing! How many mgs does he take of this? I know the tests done in Europe at only 10 mg showed no changes and other tests do show changes with 40 mg and higher.

THANK YOU for this input! I'm feeling better and better and part of that is feeling that I'm in 'Control'! I am hoping all this does make the difference.

Not to burst everyone's bubble, but that was what I was taking when my cholesterol went up to 321.

Buttercup: My husband takes 20 mg a day. He has had no side effects from it...good luck!

Buttercup:
My husband was on a statin for about a year and had significant difficulties after about 10 months or so. He was on Crestor and, while it did bring his borderline cholesterol numbers down. he felt quite awful and was downing a lot of Aleve for muscle pains. He switched to ResQ 1250 and has had great results. This is an all natural "fish oil" type product and has done a great job. He has absolutely no side effects whatsoever and, after a number of blood tests, we have found that his cholesterol numbers are the same or better than when he used Crestor. You can google them and read about their products. My husband has had stellar results and no problems whatsoever.....
Good Luck!
Chris

Buttercup,
Today I had an appointment with my Dr. to see if I could start on medication to lower my cholesterol. I was not fasting, but she decided to do some blood work to see what my numbers where like this month. I got good news a few hours after my appointment:

Jan 2007 Cholesterol 282 HDL 54 LDL 184 Trig 220
Oct 2007 Cholesterol 230 HDL 48 LDL 142 Trig 199

Here are the changes I've made to my diet:

Out with sugar, bread, white rice. I have been using Aguave nectar, sprouted grain bread (sparingly), brown rice. I have been drinking 2 teaspoon of raw apple cider vinegar (with the mother) in a glass of water 3 times per day. Maximum strength Omega 3 Fish oil. I have been Cutting back on coffee. I have been eating breakfast (I use to skip it). Every time I eat a piece of fruit I have been pairing it with some nuts or a piece of cheese. For lunch I have been preparing salads, and to make them a little more tasty I have been adding some different types of cheese and nuts to them. I added an exercise routine: 20 minute Pilates work out. I also recommend the book The South Beach diet. I find it really interesting and I have learned a great deal from it.
So apparently all this has improved my blood chemestry and I will continue to do all this to further improve my numbers and hopefully get them into the normal range. Now I just wait my my liver function result to come back. Hopefully I get some improvement there too.
I hope this helps,
Montana