Don't skip your statin
It is heartbreaking -- literally -- that more than 39,000 deaths, almost 100,000 non-fatal heart attacks and up to 65,000 strokes could be avoided if everyone who was eligible to take cholesterol-lowering medications did so.
A study in the Journal of Internal Medicine says that even though European and U.S. guidelines indicate that 47% to 87% of around 130 million U.S. adults qualify for taking a cholesterol-lowering med such as a statin, only 23% of them are using any to lower dangerously high lipid levels.
If that's you, to protect yourself, get a blood test to assess your LDL cholesterol, lipoprotein A, triglyceride and apolipoprotein B levels. That will let you know if you need to go on medication.
Then get an Rx -- if you don't have insurance (or even if you do), explore options like GoodRx or pharmaceutical companies' support programs. And then take your med! One study found that 57% of folks never filled their statin prescription, and 42% filled, but never took it. They had a chance to dodge heart woes and death, but didn't.
Looking for alternatives to taking a statin? Ask your doc about the four other types of cholesterol-lowering meds that are available. And, if you chose your parents right, a plant-based diet, light on salt, filled with unprocessed foods and healthful proteins is a powerful antidote to already-existent heart disease, as is physical activity. You can also explore cutting-edge therapies, including therapeutic plasma exchange that counter inflammation -- an underlying cause of heart conditions.
Health pioneer Michael Roizen, M.D., is chief wellness officer emeritus at the Cleveland Clinic and author of four No. 1 New York Times bestsellers. Check out his latest, "The Great Age Reboot: Cracking the Longevity Code for a Younger Tomorrow," and find out more at www.longevityplaybook.com. Email your health and wellness questions to Dr. Mike at questions@longevityplaybook.com.
(c)2023 Michael Roizen, M.D.
Distributed by King Features Syndicate, Inc.
(c) 2025 Michael Roizen, M.D. Distributed by King Features Syndicate, Inc.
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