Thanks Pace. I appreciate you have genuine concerns so lets look at your quote, given that you are my patient and I am advising statins either because
1 You are at high risk of cardiovascular death, or
2 I want you to consider the fact that in large multicentred controlled trials statins were shown to reduce the number of sudden deaths from strokes and heart attacks and that is the most likely reason you will die in your 50s or 60s
Diabetes: some statins are associated with an increased amount of diabetes, possibly due to making it happen earlier in an individual, others have the opposite effect. They are more expensive but the ones I take and prescribe.
Side effects: Memory loss is rare and reversible. We will monitor you for it if we remember. Muscle pain is common - we will stop and try another statin which usually works. Fatigue is normally part of this myalgia so ditto.
Liver failure: everyone should have a simple blood test to monitor the liver at a month, 6 months and then annually for 3 years. Late failure 'doesnt' occur. If the liver function tests are abnormal, we stop the statins and they go back to normal
Renal failure: this is the risk. Tremendously rare but happened to a colleague of mine who was poleaxed over a weekend. I take statins because the risk is minute and the benefit much more, but it is your choice
Increased cardiovascular risk: no I havent seen any paper suggesting this. CoQ10 is often added in the US and there is evidence this further reduces risk as low CoQ10 levels can see saw against the statin benefit, but bodies far more knowledgeable than me consider the actual benefit insignificant. But hey I will give you CoQ10 if you want it!
I am not eliminating cholesterol. The body has more than enough and no statin will lead to a deficiency. Yes if you eat a totally fat free diet some people will get bipolar disease, but you will continue to eat some cholesterol, except perhaps the fry up on sunday mornings. Or perhaps not.
So Pace my advice is to have a statin. One table each evening for the chance of posting on PPRuNE for many more years. I do so based on science not monetary gain, but you can walk out of my surgery without the prescription and we will remain good friends. Just please dont terrify the other patients with anecdotal mumbo jumbo or ask medicine to be abolished until every obscure paper is further researched because we might as well close down healthcare.
Next patient please