Having worked in healthcare for over 35yrs at the time; a medical director announced at a team meeting, that she thought statins were 'so wonderful' that 'they should be put in our drinking water'. I could not believe my ears!!! having worked in a critical care unit...wondering had she never seen a person with severe myalgia as result of a side effect from statins??? not to mention what would the short/ long term effects be in our children???? I had worked with truly thoughtful caring practitioners over the years, however; this was another example that caused me to lose even more confidence in the allopathic practice ... I finally left the arena after 40yrs.
"Published studies associate their use with peripheral neuropathy, memory loss, cognitive impairment, depression, and mood disturbances"
A while back, a friend told me that her dad suffered from "global amnesia" after being prescribed a statin.
Interestingly, as part of my duties while I worked in health care, I noted that I administered a LOT of statins to people who were also on Alzheimer's meds.
Heart health is affected by toxic poisons taken into the body. All drugs and vaccines are to some extent toxic. You might as well put some motor oil into your smoothie to smooth out your arteries.
There must be a lot of money riding on the statins. I was prescribed triglycerides and statins when I was diagnosed with T2 diabetes. A few years later, after doing some of my own research, I stopped the triglycerides. Then, after a little more research, I stopped the statins. Doctors didn’t say much about the triglycerides but they kept trying to get me back on the statins. I get calls from my insurance company trying to get me back on them as well.
There must be a big payout for them to be so persistent!
I was lucky enough to find a doctor, actually a physicians assistant, that listens and doesn't try to push medicines with possibly serious side effects. When my blood test came back showing high cholesterol she suggested red yeast rice instead of statins. I take them along with nattokinase every day.
Thank you Sayer for this spot on critique of statins. As an acupuncturist for over 20 years I have long noticed the correlation between patients myalgias and statin use. You have Bobby's ear, hopefully he's noticing.
Cholesterol is good for you. It's used in every cell of the body. It's an essential precursor to the body's hormone production: e.g. estrogen and testosterone. The brain uses approximately 20-25% of the body's total cholesterol. It's so vitally important that the body produces its own cholesterol. Taking a medication to stop the body's own natural process seems bizarre.
I would invite people who believe statin drugs should be in the drinking water to have a look at the first scientific paper in this article’s bibliography—a meta-analysis of 900 randomised controlled trials on statin drugs. That meta-analysis in 2008 should have been a game-changer. It should have triggered the recall of all statin drugs. It was almost completely ignored by the medical industry. Eighteen years on, medical associations worldwide continue to require physicians to prescribe statins within ever-broadening parameters, ignoring well-documented, grievous harms. Nothing has changed. Because of statin drugs, one of my parents died arthritic and diabetic. My late husband developed Parkinson’s after 3 years on a statin. Today my dear friend is struggling to walk after several years on a statin (he “trusted the doctor”) and has just been diagnosed with bowel cancer. He did stop the statin; too little, too late.
This is an important topic because statin therapy is often discussed in overly binary terms, either as a miracle drug or as something inherently harmful. As a physician-scientist, I think the evidence supports a much more nuanced view.
Statins can cause adverse effects, including muscle symptoms and, rarely, more serious complications. At the same time, large randomized trials and extensive real-world data have demonstrated meaningful reductions in cardiovascular events for appropriately selected patients. The key question is therefore not simply whether statins can have side effects, but whether the benefits outweigh the risks for a particular individual.
I also think it’s important to distinguish between plausible mechanisms and demonstrated clinical outcomes. A proposed pathway through which a drug might theoretically affect muscle, mitochondrial function, or other tissues is valuable for generating hypotheses, but it doesn’t necessarily tell us how frequently clinically meaningful harm occurs in real-world patients.
The most productive approach is individualized risk assessment: considering baseline cardiovascular risk, apoB/LDL-C exposure, Lp(a), family history, diabetes, blood pressure, coronary artery calcium when appropriate, and the patient’s own tolerance and preferences. For patients who experience adverse effects, dose adjustments, alternative statins, or non-statin therapies may provide additional options.
Ultimately, good preventive medicine isn’t about defending or attacking a medication. It’s about asking a more useful question: Which strategy gives this particular patient the greatest reduction in lifetime cardiovascular risk with the fewest meaningful harms? That is where the evidence and shared decision-making should guide us.
When my employer started attacking me in 2021 I became very stressed which, coupled with other bad habits, caused chronic inflammation resulting in calcification of my arteries. My doctor put me on Rusovastatin. My eyesight started degrading quickly which I attributed to being in my late 40's. After about a year the side effects of the statins became unbearable and I decided to stop taking them. A week later, my eyesight improved dramatically.
Statins by blocking the cholesterol synthesis pathway, blocks trained (innate) immunity by preventing HERV-K102 replication and blocking foamy macrophage (M1) formation. This likely means little or no IRF-1 produced/released. IRF-1 is needed for the upregulation of PD-L1 on endothelial cells which provides resistance to vasculitis and microclotting. Testosterone interferes with IRF-1 upregulation of PD-L1.
Having worked in healthcare for over 35yrs at the time; a medical director announced at a team meeting, that she thought statins were 'so wonderful' that 'they should be put in our drinking water'. I could not believe my ears!!! having worked in a critical care unit...wondering had she never seen a person with severe myalgia as result of a side effect from statins??? not to mention what would the short/ long term effects be in our children???? I had worked with truly thoughtful caring practitioners over the years, however; this was another example that caused me to lose even more confidence in the allopathic practice ... I finally left the arena after 40yrs.
God bless you. Finally, the money wasn't worth it?
Sometimes meaning of messages shared are
misunderstood or not recognized due to former
‘old’ belief systems that continue to be held onto
or have not been released. Namaste
It was never about the money.
"Published studies associate their use with peripheral neuropathy, memory loss, cognitive impairment, depression, and mood disturbances"
A while back, a friend told me that her dad suffered from "global amnesia" after being prescribed a statin.
Interestingly, as part of my duties while I worked in health care, I noted that I administered a LOT of statins to people who were also on Alzheimer's meds.
What a racket!!!
Yes, scary stuff. I recall an ex-astronaut even wrote a book about it to warn people, Lipitor: Thief of Memory
Heart health is affected by toxic poisons taken into the body. All drugs and vaccines are to some extent toxic. You might as well put some motor oil into your smoothie to smooth out your arteries.
The motor oil may be less toxic than many things being prescribed today!
There must be a lot of money riding on the statins. I was prescribed triglycerides and statins when I was diagnosed with T2 diabetes. A few years later, after doing some of my own research, I stopped the triglycerides. Then, after a little more research, I stopped the statins. Doctors didn’t say much about the triglycerides but they kept trying to get me back on the statins. I get calls from my insurance company trying to get me back on them as well.
There must be a big payout for them to be so persistent!
I was lucky enough to find a doctor, actually a physicians assistant, that listens and doesn't try to push medicines with possibly serious side effects. When my blood test came back showing high cholesterol she suggested red yeast rice instead of statins. I take them along with nattokinase every day.
One of my doctors had a wise young PA like you describe. Unfortunately, his mom developed dementia and he had to move to take care of her.
Thank you Sayer for this spot on critique of statins. As an acupuncturist for over 20 years I have long noticed the correlation between patients myalgias and statin use. You have Bobby's ear, hopefully he's noticing.
Cholesterol is good for you. It's used in every cell of the body. It's an essential precursor to the body's hormone production: e.g. estrogen and testosterone. The brain uses approximately 20-25% of the body's total cholesterol. It's so vitally important that the body produces its own cholesterol. Taking a medication to stop the body's own natural process seems bizarre.
"Over time, this assumption has calcified into medical dogma"
Calcified. I see what you did there! lol
Seriously though, great article and worth sharing widely!
I would invite people who believe statin drugs should be in the drinking water to have a look at the first scientific paper in this article’s bibliography—a meta-analysis of 900 randomised controlled trials on statin drugs. That meta-analysis in 2008 should have been a game-changer. It should have triggered the recall of all statin drugs. It was almost completely ignored by the medical industry. Eighteen years on, medical associations worldwide continue to require physicians to prescribe statins within ever-broadening parameters, ignoring well-documented, grievous harms. Nothing has changed. Because of statin drugs, one of my parents died arthritic and diabetic. My late husband developed Parkinson’s after 3 years on a statin. Today my dear friend is struggling to walk after several years on a statin (he “trusted the doctor”) and has just been diagnosed with bowel cancer. He did stop the statin; too little, too late.
This is an important topic because statin therapy is often discussed in overly binary terms, either as a miracle drug or as something inherently harmful. As a physician-scientist, I think the evidence supports a much more nuanced view.
Statins can cause adverse effects, including muscle symptoms and, rarely, more serious complications. At the same time, large randomized trials and extensive real-world data have demonstrated meaningful reductions in cardiovascular events for appropriately selected patients. The key question is therefore not simply whether statins can have side effects, but whether the benefits outweigh the risks for a particular individual.
I also think it’s important to distinguish between plausible mechanisms and demonstrated clinical outcomes. A proposed pathway through which a drug might theoretically affect muscle, mitochondrial function, or other tissues is valuable for generating hypotheses, but it doesn’t necessarily tell us how frequently clinically meaningful harm occurs in real-world patients.
The most productive approach is individualized risk assessment: considering baseline cardiovascular risk, apoB/LDL-C exposure, Lp(a), family history, diabetes, blood pressure, coronary artery calcium when appropriate, and the patient’s own tolerance and preferences. For patients who experience adverse effects, dose adjustments, alternative statins, or non-statin therapies may provide additional options.
Ultimately, good preventive medicine isn’t about defending or attacking a medication. It’s about asking a more useful question: Which strategy gives this particular patient the greatest reduction in lifetime cardiovascular risk with the fewest meaningful harms? That is where the evidence and shared decision-making should guide us.
Thank you!
Honest question, as I'm trying to figure out what's right for me (having a very high coronary calcium deposit score of 1019):
If high cholesterol is not the fundamental problem, why do you offer so many non-drug alternatives for lowering cholesterol levels?
GREAT question!
When my employer started attacking me in 2021 I became very stressed which, coupled with other bad habits, caused chronic inflammation resulting in calcification of my arteries. My doctor put me on Rusovastatin. My eyesight started degrading quickly which I attributed to being in my late 40's. After about a year the side effects of the statins became unbearable and I decided to stop taking them. A week later, my eyesight improved dramatically.
Thank you for sharing! 👍🏻
Very well done. One of the best pieces this week although it's only Tuesday :-)
Statins by blocking the cholesterol synthesis pathway, blocks trained (innate) immunity by preventing HERV-K102 replication and blocking foamy macrophage (M1) formation. This likely means little or no IRF-1 produced/released. IRF-1 is needed for the upregulation of PD-L1 on endothelial cells which provides resistance to vasculitis and microclotting. Testosterone interferes with IRF-1 upregulation of PD-L1.
Excellent post Sayer, thank you so much. Many Blessings