I just watched the newest Oz movie, Oz the Great and Powerful. I enjoyed it, as I love everything about the Wizard of Oz. Watching that movie reminded me of what has happened in medicine. In the movie, Oz figures out how to use his ‘magic’ to defeat the witches and win over the people. How does he do it? He accomplishes this feat through slight-of-hand. He convinces the witches and the people of Oz that he is great and powerful by projecting a scary image of himself. Remember, in the original Oz movie, it took Toto, the dog, to pull the Wizard’s curtain back to realize that he wasn’t scary —he was just a man trying to market himself as someone he wasn’t. This brings us to the new, modern wizard of our times—it is the Big Pharma Cartel. They scare us by convincing us that we need to take their drugs, or else something bad will happen. Let’s take the case of the statin drugs.
The ‘cholesterol = heart disease’ hypothesis has been around for over 100 years, even though there is no proof that it is valid. In the U.S., statin medications, such as Lipitor, Zocor, Mevacor, Crestor, Pravachol, and Vytorin, have been available for 26 years. During this time they have become the most profitable drugs ever sold by the Big Pharma Cartel. The Big Pharma Cartel has scared Americans into thinking that if they don’t lower their cholesterol, they are a ticking time bomb that will eventually end with a fatal heart attack. It is an amazing feat when you consider that these drugs have never been shown, in any individual who has not had a heart attack or stroke, to save lives, prolong lives, or reduce the risk of a fatal heart attack. Also amazing, is the fact that, in men who have had a cardiac event (stroke or heart attack), the best this class of drugs has been shown to do is lower the risk of a non-fatal heart attack by approximately 1-5%(in the best of the studies that the Big Pharma Cartel have allowed to be published).
How about women? Another amazing feat. About 25% of U.S. women over the age of 45 currently take a statin medication even though statins, in women, have:
- · NEVER been shown to prevent a fatal heart attack
- · NEVER been shown to prolong lives
For women and the elderly, there is no indication, EVER, to take a statin medication.
It is more amazing when you consider that every cholesterol-lowering medication class has been shown to increase the rate of cancer. Now, to be fair, there are studies which show that statins do not increase the risk of cancer, but they are all short-term studies.
A study, released today (July 5, 2013) reported that in women, current users of statins for 10 years or longer had a 83% increase risk of invasive ductal carcinoma and a 97% increase risk of invasive lobular carcinoma of the breast as compared to never users. (1) Among women with high cholesterol levels, current users of statins for 10 years or longer had a 204% increase risk of invasive ductal carcinoma and a 243% increase risk of invasive lobular carcinoma as compared to never users.
Breast cancer is a plague affecting nearly one in seven U.S. women. There are many, many studies showing a lowered cholesterol level increases the cancer risk. It should come as no surprise that chemically lowering cholesterol levels will increase cancer rates.
Statin drugs should be pulled from the market place. People do not have high cholesterol levels due to a ‘statin-deficiency syndrome’. Elevated cholesterol levels can be managed through a holistic approach that focuses on diet, detoxification and nutritional supplementation. More information about this holistic approach can be found in my book, Drugs That Don’t Work and Natural Therapies That Do.
(1) Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev Published OnlineFirst July 5, 2013
http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/early/2013/07/04/1055-9965.EPI-13-0414.abstract
Hello: I have read that in cases of people with FH, taking statins might be justified. I have FH but am against statins. I’m a 67 year old female and just came down with shingles for the first time. I also was having elevated bs levels, though I don’t have diabetes. The bs level came down to normal after being treated for the shingles. So did my bp. I’m so against going back on the 40 Lipitor (was on 80 years ago and had to stop because of side effects). My doctor is so upset and annoyed at me, and also went so far as to tell me I’d die if I didn’t go back on Lipitor. I’m doing my best to figure it out, but really am not confident with his advice, or even the advice of a Lipidologist who also prescribed a different statin which I didn’t take in favor of the Lipitor. If you cover this is any of your books, I’d love to know which to buy and read thru. Thank you.
Florence,
I do cover this in my book, Drugs That Don’t Work and Natural Therapies That Do. Statin drugs have never been shown to prolong the life of a FH patient.
DrB
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Brad (way at top of blog) – if you knew of Dr. Brownstein and his success rate, you would also know that he does not need to promote his books. He constantly gets requests from patients and non-patients for information; this is the best way for him to get the information across.
Dr. B.,
In the middle of the second paragraph of your blog, it seems that you are saying that there are some instances where the statin drug is indicated (after a stroke or heart attack) or am I reading more in to it than is there?
“……when you consider that these drugs have never been shown, in any individual who has not had a heart attack or stroke, to save lives, prolong lives, or reduce the risk of a fatal heart attack.”
I had an acute non Q-wave myocardial infarction at the end of January 2012, and have been on a statin drug since then, except for a 6 week stretch recently. They placed a stent in the obtuse marginal branch of the circumflex in the back of my heart.
I would love to be off this drug, but I have been told that the cholesterol will try to collect in the stent, causing a problem again if I don’t take the medicine. What has your experience been with people with stents and previous heart attacks. Is there hope of ever getting off the medicine? Is your advice different for me than for people that have not had a heart attack or stent placement?
Jenny,
You have to decide if a 1-5% reduction in a non-fatal heart attack is worth the risk–remember, that reduction only applies to middle-aged men. It does not apply to women of any age or elderly men. Keep in mind, a 1-5% absolute reduction means 99-95% of the others taking it get no benefit. Not great odds considering the fact that the drugs have a lot of side effects.
Statins have not been shown, in any study that compares their use against a placebo, to prolong life.
Only you can decide if taking that drug is right for you.
DrB
As. Dr. Brownstein points out, statins are irrelevant for women and the tragic thing is that women with the highest cholesterol numbers, over 300, actually live the longest. This turned up in a megastudy of studies on women and cholesterol – I forget the name of the study, but it’s referenced in Gary Taubes’ book.
I’ve known all this for years, but have been unable to convince a single statin-taking woman friend that it’s not only pointless, it’s dangerous. Possibly the breast cancer anxiety will wake women up once this study gains some recognition.
My father and myself as well as my grandparents that lived into their 90s without Pharma Cartel are living proof that diet DOES MATTER. On the other had my Mother is living proof Statins do not work and her diet has really been the reason she has been on Mevacor for many, many years and it hasn’t made a significant difference in her cholesterol, diabetes or blood pressure. We began forcing her to juice and take flaxseed and eat oatmeal with Blueberries with walnuts in it. Something she hates. She was also walking on the treadmill and started at 3 minutes and worked her way up to 30 and even 45 minutes once. Not only was her last visit to the doctor very pleasant, her physician was astounded at the weight she had lost and her serology report came back wonderful with regards to her diabetes and cholesterol. Keep writing the books and if people are worried about you promoting your books then they are the ones that really want you to give us your education for free.
My mother was prescribed Lipitor for high cholesterol and instead added cinnamon to her diet as well as plant sterols (through her orange juice). She went back one month later and the doctor said she was happy to see the drugs were working. My mother told her she hadn’t taken one and the doctor was amazed! Taking the nutritional approach definitely worked for her!
Thank you so much for this extremely helpful information. I am weary of the overzealous doctors these days who are trying to find one disease or another in order to prescribe a medication to “help” us. I just recently spent 6 weeks running around and finally running away from an endocrinologist who really wanted me to be sick so he could peddle his medications. Thankfully, I went back to my integrative doctor, kept to my holistic plan and armour thyroid and iodine and I am back to feeling 75% better and after a couple of weeks, I will be to 100%. Thanks so much Dr. Brownstein because my integrative doctor follows your protocol and it has saved my life!
Would statins and these results apply to people who are taking red yeast rice?
Mary Ann,
Yes. Red yeast rice poisons the same enzyme that statins do. I see no reason to ever use red yeast rice.
DrB
Thanks for the great info! Could you give the name of the study that showed this? I went to look for the abstract on this site http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/current that you sited above but couldn’t figure out which research article it was. Thanks so much. I’d love to read the whole study to see how they came to the specific conclusions.
Frank,
Sorry about that. Try this one: http://cebp.aacrjournals.org/content/early/2013/07/04/1055-9965.EPI-13-0414.abstract
Dr. B
I find the information provided is so useful. I share whenever appropriate with my friends who are equally appropriate. Thanks,
Great article! Such a relief to hear the truth from a doctor, and it’s so comprehensive; perfect for forwarding to friends & family. “Cartel” is no exaggeration- I’m reading about the history of racketeering, and big pharma has been using the exact same methods.
In addition to breast cancer risk, I would bet that statins increase prostate cancer risk as well- tragically, since most men over 45 seem to be on them. I’ve also wondered if the rise of statin use mirrors the rise of alzheimers in the US as well, since it suppresses cholesterol production, which the brain is mostly made of.
The logic of prescribing statins to women over 45 is mind-boggling- it’s like telling someone who lost a leg to fix it by getting the other one removed! (in that they need to replace deficient hormones, not block all hormone production)
The best cholesterol lowering “drug” is dessicated thyroid. My wife has been taking it for several years. Her cholesterol has come down form 230 to (this past February) to 150. If anything, she is eating a worse diet today than when she started taking Armour thyroid.
I emember reading that back in the 1950s (give or take ) the standard action for high cholesterol was dessicated thyroid.
I, too, have problems with big pharma and the meds pushed on individuals by the medical establishment indoctrinated by big pharma. My only concern with your blog, Dr. Brownstein, is that all paths seem to lead to a plug for your books. Now, I’m not suggesting that your books aren’t valuable resources, just that yours aren’t the only sources out there challenging the big pharma zeitgeist and the regular referencing of your books arguably leaves the reader raising an eyebrow as to the motives behind your blog. That is, much like big pharma, you run the risk of being perceived as stoking the fears of the layperson to sell your products, and that would be a shame.
Brad,
Sorry you feel that way. If you can’t understand my motives, then there is nothing more I can say. I never claimed my books were the only books out there. I reference many other books in my books.
DrB