Why do cholesterol lowering drugs (statins) cause

~~     A research team at the University of Arizona headed by neuroscientist Linda L. Restifo may have found the reason. The possible cause has been labeled the "string of beads" phenomenon by the team. The study is published in the journal "Disease Models and Mechanisms".
     This "string of beads" is actually multiple bulges that form in the nerve cells of test animals exposed to statin drugs. These nerve mutations may correlate with the cognitive decline seen in patients taking this class of drugs. The team of researchers feels that these bulges may cause a sort of "traffic jam" in nerve signals, thereby not allowing the "information" being sent along the nerve pathway to travel along in an uninterrupted path.
     Restifo notes that in many cases this class of drugs which is used to drive cholesterol levels down also causes a concurrent reduction in cognitive ability. She also notes that when this does occur many prescribing doctors will simply tell the patient and their family that this is simply a result of aging, and never relate it to a side effect of the statin drug. This is an unfortunate situation when for years the actual cause of this progressive memory loss is actually the drug being prescribed to lower cholesterol levels.
     The interesting thing that the team also found was that when the drug was removed the "string of beads" appearance of the nerve cells returned to normal. When you consider what Restifo goes on to state you can see that this conundrum comes full circle. She notes that; "In the clinical literature you can read reports of fuzzy thinking which stops when a patient stops taking statins. So, that was a very important demonstration of a parallel between the clinical reports and the laboratory phenomena."
     They also believe that there may be a genetic link to the ability to form these "beads" in the nerve cell. Another researcher on the team Monica Chaung notes that "It's not a one drug fits all" situation. In other words some individuals may be more "susceptible" to the formation than others. She goes on to state that; "We suspect that different gene mutations alter the way that certain people respond to statins."
      Another interesting thing that this study indicated was that out of the 1040 different drug compounds that the team tested, the statins were the only ones that caused this alteration in the nerve cells. 
     The truly alarming thing to me regarding this class of drugs is that they are now being prescribed to children. Yes believe it or not your children and grandchildren are experiencing increases in their cholesterol levels. I want you to understand that this phenomenon is not due to them having too little of these statin drugs in their blood stream. No, not at all! In fact it is due to their "life-style choices". Yes that's correct, they don't Eat Right, Think Right, Move Right, or Sleep Right!!!! That is the cause.
      Now here is the problem with this new potentially life threatening situation that we are creating by allowing the prescription of these drugs to our children. We don't know how these drugs will affect their cognitive development on a long term basis. As was noted by Robert Kraft another lead researcher on this study; "If statins have an effect on how the nervous system matures that could be devastating."
     I will end with a quote from Restifo that I would like all of you to pay close attention to, and consider before beginning or continuing the use of statin drugs. "These are not trivial things. This could have a significant impact on your life, your interpersonal relationships, your ability to hold a job. This is the part of the brain that allows us to think clearly, to plan, to hold onto memories. If people are concerned that they are having this problem, patients should ask their physicians."
     Please do not overlook this potential cause for any "cognitive issues" that you may be experiencing and act on this information.
  Want to get off statins? Here at the Center we can help you to avoid and even reverse high cholesterol.
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