Are you sick of hearing the LIE about statin risks, cholesterol dangers, saturated fats, and the like?
Today I wanted to share with you a “Caustic Commentary” from the Spring 2012 issue of Wise Traditions, a quarterly journal put out by the Weston A. Price Foundation. This blurb was particularly caustic for me because several of my loved ones are diabetic and on statin drugs, and I'm not sure which came first for them…
Doctors in the U.S. write over two hundred fifty million prescriptions for cholesterol-lowering statin drugs per year, despite the long list of side effects these drugs cause: memory loss, cognitive decline, Parkinson’s disease, muscle wasting, back pain, heart failure, weakness and fatigue. Now another can be added to the list: diabetes. A study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine that looked at data gleaned from the Women’s Health Initiative, found a nearly 50 percent increase in diabetes among longtime statin users. A 2011 analysis in the Journal of the American Medical Association and a 2010 analysis in The Lancet also found a higher risk of diabetes among those taking cholesterol-lowering drugs. Doctors may be hemming and hawing, but they continue to prescribe these dangerous drugs. “I don’t think there’s any debate remaining, particularly in the higher doses, about whether statins slightly increase the risk of developing diabetes,” says cardiologist Steven Nissen of the Cleveland Clinic. Yet he notes that statins are “among the best drugs we’ve got.” Even a spokesperson for the American Diabetes Association (ADA) urges the continuation of statins. “Every medication has risks and benefits,” says Vivian Fonseca, president of the ADA, “but you don’t want people to have heart attacks because they are so worried about getting diabetes.”
They're still pushing the LIE:
The lipid hypothesis is a scam (the theory that saturated fats and cholesterol cause heart disease), yet that's the drug protocol millions of people are put on day after day.
Read more about saturated fats and cholesterol and watch this video:
Hypercholesterolemia is the health issue of the 21st century. It is actually an invented disease, a “problem” that emerged when health professionals learned how to measure cholesterol levels in the blood. High cholesterol exhibits no outward signs–unlike other conditions of the blood, such as diabetes or anemia, diseases that manifest telltale symptoms like thirst or weakness–hypercholesterolemia requires the services of a physician to detect its presence. Many people who feel perfectly healthy suffer from high cholesterol–in fact, feeling good is actually a symptom of high cholesterol!
Doctors who treat this new disease must first convince their patients that they are sick and need to take one or more expensive drugs for the rest of their lives, drugs that require regular checkups and blood tests. But such doctors do not work in a vacuum–their efforts to convert healthy people into patients are bolstered by the full weight of the US government, the media and the medical establishment, agencies that have worked in concert to disseminate the cholesterol dogma and convince the population that high cholesterol is the forerunner of heart disease and possibly other diseases as well. (Source)
“Just give me a pill so I can keep eating the foods I love!“
Do most people even question their doctors about these drugs? Nope. They want the magic pill so they don't have to change their eating habits. The ironic thing, though, is that eating better, aside from what their docs are telling them, means eating Real Food, which tastes SO good! Butter anyone? Chicken dinner with REAL gravy? Homemade ice cream?! Deep fried onion rings? It's not like eating this way is a hardship!
“But boxed foods/fast food is so convenient.”
So are a lot of real foods, too! Check out my list of simple fast food meals to make at home.
Here's another video where you'll hear an MIT scientist explain why Statin drugs (for cholesterol-lowering) are so dangerous, and why they contribute to the very problem they are “supposed” to prevent.
“Statin Drugs Are Poisons That Cause Heart Disease”:
What about you? How difficult was it for you to get over the low-fat lie? Are you still not convinced that saturated fats are actually good for us?
More you might like:
- Scroll down at this healthy fats post for more specifically on why statins are so terrible for us
- Responses to “How difficult was it to give up the low-fat mentality?” Including responses from Nina Planck, Sally Fallon & more!
- Where to buy healthy fats
Statins and memory loss — do statins make you stupid?
Check out this book, Cholesterol Clarity: What the HDL is Wrong with My Numbers?!
Statins and memory loss — do statins make you stupid?
More cholesterol posts:
- Read here all about healthy fats
- Is cholesterol good for us?
- What should my cholesterol BE?
- Cholesterol drugs for kids – do kids need to lower their cholesterol?!
- Side effects from statins/cholesterol medications
- Are cholesterol medicines safe? What about LDL & HDL? You’ve got to read the info toward the bottom of this post about the movie Fathead!
- Another good one from Dr. Eades
- History of Heart Disease
- Statins after a heart attack? – read about my brother-in-law’s heart scare
- Read about Mike’s follow-up appointment at the heart doc.
- More pharmaceutical bull crap – read why the pharmacy contacted my sister
- A burger, fries and a side of Lipitor please!
- Pushing the LIE
Jennifer W. says
I am concerned about statins as well. My cholesterol is 290. I eat only whole foods and follow nourishing traditions. I do not eat processed foods, preservatives, colorings, flavorings or artificial sweetners. I have never taken a statin or any supplement to lower my cholesterol. It has only gone higher in the last 5 years (I am 42).
I wonder if that statin is causing the diabetes or if there is another reason that those with high cholesterol are getting diabetes I wonder because my glucose and insulin levels have been climbing over the last 5 years in step lock with my rising cholesterol. I am currently pre-diabetic now too.
Dr. Mercola has been saying that there is a possible connection with those with high cholesterol and diabetes. He believes the connection has to do with eating fructose (I do eat fruit but not much…I do not eat much sugar, honey or other sweetners) and consuming grains (I do eat whole grains).
I am currently implementing his recommendations to see if avoiding grains and eliminating fructose normalizes my cholesterol and, more importantly, reduceds my insulin/glucose levels.
Just a thought….
Amy says
Jennifer, any nutritionist can tell you that diabetes has never been shown to be associated with a high-sugar or high-carb diet. However, it has been shown to be associated with high-fat diets. Maybe you should try lowering the fats instead of the fruits and grains.
Diane says
Try watching Mary Vernon’s videos on the web or checking her website.
Jennifer W. says
I do not have a high fat diet. I am a vegetarian. I eat only good fats and I eat them in moderation. Thanks for the idea though.
KitchenKop says
Amy,
I don’t necessarily trust nutritionists, though, either.
Have you seen the videos at this post? https://kellythekitchenkop.com/2009/09/big-fat-lies-fat-head-movie-review-real-food-wednesday.html
Kelly
Andra says
I love this post, I’m sharing it on Facebook.
Diane says
What on earth has happened to the idea of “first do no harm”? I know of people having lung transplants because an antibiotic medicine prescribed for something else made it necessary. It used to be that people asked their doctors for pills to solve their problems, but I would say NOW the doctors are claiming NORMAL is a problem and they are the ones pushing the pills. In the past when I have followed my doctor’s advice, I got fat and was diagnosed with “metabolic syndrome” and then told I ate too much. I became my OWN doctor and now I am a lot healthier.
Dr. Kate Hazlitt ND says
Gigi – there is a physiological rebound of cholesterol that occurs for a short time after a person goes off a statin drug. In other words, it does shoot up for a few weeks after stopping. 4-6 weeks in my opinion probably wasn’t enough time to get through this window. Statins turn off the cholesterol producing cells in the body, so when they have the chance to turn back on, they have a hay day. Eventually they figure themselves out. Cellular detox is also important afterwards to regain some of the normal function of the liver.
Gigi says
Thank you very much for the reply, Dr Hazlitt! It seemed logical to me that the body would do that, but I’d never heard of it. Weird that they tested it so very soon after taking her off it, but I don’t know if that was a previously scheduled blood draw, or if they scheduled it at the same appointment that he took her off it. (Which may have been the plan, to scare her back onto it, but now I’m wandering into paranoia land, LOL)
Ellen says
When at a conference focused on improving access to pharmaceuticals for low-income patients I was sitting at a table with doctors and pharmacists. Not one was taking statin drugs–rather they were all taking high doses of Niacin to manage their cholesterol. My then partner was using the same protocol and the only side effects were problems with flushing, a minor inconvenience.
Kelly the Kitchen Kop says
Interesting… Was this recently?
Gigi says
I printed an article about why women should stop their statin drugs (by Dr Hyman on Huffington Post) for my mother-in-law (80yo), and while we were visiting, convinced her to use whole milk instead of skim, and butter instead of margarine. When she went to the doctor, she asked him, of her own volition (I was not there!), what was all this she’d heard about statins being bad. He said, “Well, let’s see,” looked at her chart & said, “Eh, you don’t need to take them. Why are you taking baby aspirin?” She said, “Because you told me to.” “Oh. Well, you don’t need that, either.” So she stopped both, started eating slightly better, but apparently only a FEW weeks later – I mean, like 4-6 weeks? – they did a blood test and her total cholesterol had shot up over 300, so of *course* the doc put her back on the damned statin. Hubs told me that that ship has now sailed, and I will never be able to convince her to get off it ever again. However, we plan to move her to Texas with us, eventually, so she’ll have to get a new doc here, and maybe they’ll take her off it.
Has anyone ever heard of cholesterol doubling like that in such a short time?! My gut reaction is it was her body trying to rebalance after years of being on the drugs, and they simply didn’t give it time to do so. But I have never heard or read of this happening. Even I’m concerned about a total of over 300!
Kelly the Kitchen Kop says
The thing is, 2 hours after that test, she could’ve had her blood drawn again & it might’ve been low, it changes throughout the day!
Susan says
Gigi- I get your frustration! My father’s cholesterol seems to fall somewhere between 180 and 200 and his doctor still puts him on statins! No matter how much I beg and plead for him not to take them, he still does so, even though he will admit they make him feel like crap. UGH!
Unfortunately, with med schools being funded by Big Pharma, our docs can only do what they’ve been trained to do and that is write prescriptions. The US now writes more prescriptions than the rest of the world COMBINED!!
Convincing the older generation that doctors don’t know everything can be difficult because that generation was taught that doctors fall right underneath God in the pecking order. I hate to say it, but the older folks are the “sheeple” that Big Pharma hoped to groom.
Gigi says
Seriously, right?!?!!
Last fall, I had blood test for some life insurance, my total cholesterol was 198. The underwriter called the agent (who is one of our BFFs) and said, “Ask this woman what she is doing! She is the healthiest woman of this age range I’ve ever written a policy for!”
Husband had his routine blood test, his total was 202, 20 points below 2 years ago, and his doc *insisted* on calling in a statin for him. Now, we didn’t pick up the called-in prescription – doc has been trying to get Hubs to take it for 20 years and he never has, LOL, but really?!?! Mine was healthiest ever at 198, and his is of grave concern at 202?!! Give me a break.
Speaking of which, every time we encounter a health professional, they are *amazed* that at 45 & 61, we take NO daily pharmaceuticals. And our diet could still stand improvement. Contrast this to our 26yo daughters – who struggle with allergies, degenerative conditions, migraines, and constant sinus infections, taking pharmaceuticals every day of their young lives. And they think our dietary beliefs are crazy! *Sigh*. I’ve given up talking to them about it, and hope our example will eventually inspire them 🙂
Oh boy, can I rant on this – Cholesterol is one of my favorite topics!! Mmmmm… cholesterol. ‘scuse me, I need to go eat my daily three pastured eggs swimming in Kerrygold!
KitchenKop says
They’ll get it one of these days, Gigi, at least that’s what I’m praying for our kids, too!!!