I'm not on any meds other than one for my BP ( & I"m working to get off that if possible) keep my A1C in the 5-5.3 range & have a HDL of 105, and a ldl of less than a hundred. I will take a statin only at gunpoint, they put my sister in her wheelchair, and refuse to even fill the script should I be given one.
But everyone is different.
Statistics? Certainly sir, which result would you like today?
You make some good points. For me simvastatin does exactly what it says on the tin and reduces my LDL. Diet has made major benefits to my HDL and trigs. For others this is simply not true. What is needed is an approach which determines the best treatment options for each individual, but that's exactly NOT what the drug companies want or would be prepared to finance.
IMO all drugs may have benefits and may have side effects which differ significantly between individuals. Most studies are looking at a population as if it follows a bell curve when in fact it may be a series of genetic sub-populations each with widely differing results.
It may be that statins are hugely successful for a minority of patients, dangerous for another minority and have no effect on the majority, but who would finance a study to discover this?
My husband and I have an ongoing conversation about his taking Crestor at 42 because he has "prediabetes" which is supposed to raise his cardiovascular risk. I wanted to forward this article to him because it was interesting and balanced, but the comment about civilization possibly lasting no longer than 50-100 years made you look cooky. He would read that line and discredit the whole thing. Perhaps you meant it in jest, but it really stole your credibility. Bummer.
The Jupiter study was funded by Astrazeneca and they have attempted to use the statistics to show a skewed perspective of the results. I have 2 points to make:
1) A recent JUPITER drug study (Justification for the Use of statins in Primary prevention: an Intervention Trial Evaluating Rosuvastatin) published in The New England Journal of Medicine heavily promoted the benefits of Crestor. According to the study, Crestor, a cholesterol-lowering drug, was promoted as having health benefits when prescribed to people who, other than somewhat elevated CRP levels, were healthy, didn’t have high cholesterol and also had no other chronic conditions. Glowing published reports stated that Crestor reduced the combined risk of heart attack or stroke in the higher-CRP population by 47%, reduced the risk of heart attack by 54%, cut the risk of stroke by 48%, and even lowered the total mortality rate by 20%. One glaring omission according to the JUPITER Study’s own statistics was that, while the number of heart attacks went down in the Crestor group, the total number of fatal heart attacks went up 50% in the Crestor group, when compared to the placebo group. This significant point somehow never made it into media accounts of Crestor’s “wonder drug” status.
2) Other than the many known side effects of Crestor, the JUPITER Study actually found and documented another significant and dangerous side effect – diabetes. Media accounts of this ”wonder drug” overlooked that physicians reported a full 9% increase in the incidence of diabetes within the Crestor group.
These facts are not vague opinions like how a person might feel with an aspirin. They are scientific PROOF and EVIDENCE. I do not understand why a health professional would offer anything other than these facts if they do not have anything to gain. Or do they? $$$
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Great report. Bringing some thoughtful reasoning to a confusing subject.
Perhaps studies should be comparing 3 groups, non-diabetics, controlled diabetics with A1c in specified range, and diabetics with A1c above that range.
One thing I've read about supplements is that they are only helpful in people deficient in that particular thing.
I've also observed that with certain meds I get less side-effects when I really need them - ie: early on, than when I'm nearly well and it seems like my system doesn't need them any as much anymore. Of course some would say that's from a build up effect, but it seems to me more like when they are busy combatting the condition there's not so much running loose in my system wreaking havoc elsewhere.
Perhaps the same would be true for controlled Diabetics. The help from certain meds, etc would be minimal compared to the effect for high A1c Diabetics.
Overall, I think the less we have to take the better - meds, supplements etc. Now, if they come out with a pill to improve will-power so I can maintain all with sensible dietary controls ... well that's one I'd love to consider!
I agree with you that the fewer drugs we take the better, as long as we can maintain reasonable levels of blood glucose, A1c, lipid levels, and blood pressure without the drugs.
Some people are so drug-phobic that they accept higher BG levels that are actually more damaging than the drugs they might take to lower them.
As for a drug to increase willpower, you could try Byetta, which causes nausea and reduces eating in a lot of people. Some people find that metformin does the same. I think your problem is not a lack of exercise, as you seem to get a lot of that.
Other people find that standing naked in front of a full-length mirror offers good inspiration for eating less, unless, of course, you live in a culture that admires overweight people.
Hmmmm - not sure if they admire rotund here it sure is prevalent among people my age (and many much younger) as is Diabetes.
Byetta - maybe if I have to go back on meds and IF medicare will cover it.
Metformin for me was a disaster of wgt gain and side effects and hence one of the best willpower boosters to STAY off meds which is where I am now - with satisfactory BGs and A1c. But it isn't easy.