High Cholesterol Support Group
High cholesterol is the presence of high levels of cholesterol in the blood. It is not a disease but a metabolic derangement that can be secondary to many diseases and can contribute to many forms of disease, most notably cardiovascular disease. If you have high cholesterol, join the community to find support and share your experience.
Medical studies andthe cholesterol guidelines. How they are set.
Excellent article written in 2013. Still holds true today. Think the guidelines were written for the benefit of patients? Think again.
http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/11/17/when-medical-experts-disagree/the-bottom-line-with-medical-studies-often-the-drug-companies
Excellent article written in 2013. Still holds true today. Think the guidelines were written for the benefit of patients? Think again.
http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2013/11/17/when-medical-experts-disagree/the-bottom-line-with-medical-studies-often-the-drug-companies
I discovered quickly that the study referred to in the article was bogus when I found the Excel spreadsheet that doctors are supposed to use to help them determine if a specific patient falls into the 7 1/2% group. The spreadsheet requires just a few entries, but only one really drives the results - age. If one enters any number above 60 or so (I cannot remember the exact number), then the patient is put into the 7 1/2% group regardless of any other risk factors entered. Great, more statin sales!
This whole issue of our beloved government looking out for us is exposed in two great books; "Death by Food Pyramid", and "The Big Fat Surprise". Both show how politics and money really drives what the government says we should eat. What about the great "Mediterranean diet" one may ask? Cannot be any money in this one; think again. Olive oil, has big sponsors (growers) in Europe pushing this one.
Thanks for sharing it with us.
In my opinion, statistical deception runs rampant among drug studies today, all in an effort to increase sales.
If there really was a pill that reduced heart attacks by 40%, it would be the worst thing for a drug company's future bottom line. No company wants their market dissolved.
But consumer PERCEPTION a pill reduces risk by 40%, that's a Goose that lays golden eggs.
Statins were not created out of goodwill as some type of humanitarian effort. Statins were created to meet market demand to lower cholesterol and reap profits...and that is exactly what they have done.
Artery plaque is not just made up of cholesterol. Calcium and proteins are also components in plaque burden. But we don't see any marketing to lower protein and calcium. Those components of plaque are not viewed as Villains and thus have no market.
Its all about sales numbers. Sales can be very aggressive. Exaggerating benefits and downplaying drawbacks is a normal part of selling.
They have no desire to address side effects or figure out why they happen. More important is this quarter's bottom line being improved and pleasing investors.
That's what this is really all about.
Homocysteine levels are not checked in a regular CBC but they are what matters in terms of heart disease.
People with the MTHFR gene mutation (20 - 30% of the population) often have more problems with heart disease - and sometimes early heart disease. The treatment is to stay away from folic acid and take a special methylized folate. It's cheap and will help drive down homocysteine which helps protect your heart but can also help prevent Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, depression, anxiety, irritable bowel and miscarriage - in people who have the mutation.
The test is cheap and if your doctor won't do it, you can get it through 23andme for $99.