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A Bombshell Drops on Cholesterol Medication's Glass House
A Bombshell Drops on Cholesterol Medication's Glass House
Author: Byron Richards 11/21/06
It had to happen sooner or later. On October 3, 2006, after extensive review of all studies relating
to cholesterol-lowering benefits by statin drugs, scientists reporting in the Annals of Internal
Medicine pulled the rug out from under the current government-sanctioned cholesterol levels for
reducing cardiovascular disease risk. Their conclusion, "current clinical evidence does not
demonstrate that titrating lipid therapy to achieve proposed low LDL cholesterol levels is beneficial
or safe." This is not a trivial issue. Many billions of taxpayer dollars have been wasted on the
cholesterol drug scam. The health and well being of millions of Americans may have been
compromised by reckless lowering of cholesterol, a substance that is vital to health and energy
production.
It has long been recognized that adults who have naturally lower cholesterol levels during their 40s
and 50s have less heart disease as they grow older. A large body of science supports the notion
that LDL cholesterol levels lower than 130 mg/dL is an excellent goal for one and all. How a person
should arrive at this goal is a matter of considerable debate. A good diet and exercise is the
foundation for any person's health program and for many this approach is adequate. The use of
nutritional supplements to help lower cholesterol, products that have virtually no side effects and
may be highly effective, is considered by the FDA to be an illegal health claim. Instead, the FDA
expects Americans to use statin drugs to accomplish this goal, even though the medications have a
general anti-energy effect and long list of potentially serious side effects that are not clearly
explained to those taking the medications or even to the doctors giving them out.
To make matters worse, several years ago the government-funded National Cholesterol Education
Program promoted new guidelines for the use of these drugs. It was recommend that individuals at
high cardiovascular disease risk attain LDL levels < 100 mg/dL and individuals at very high
cardiovascular risk attain LDL levels < 70 mg/dL. These are abnormally low levels of cholesterol,
meaning drugs must be used to create an artificially low level of LDL cholesterol, an unnatural
physiological condition. This is very difficult to do and requires high doses of statins, doubling or
tripling the dose, oftentimes combined with other drugs. Needless to say, such therapies are
extremely expensive and often do not work. These guidelines immediately boosted the sales of
statins from fifteen billion per year when the report was released in 2004 to over twenty-two billion
in 2005. And now we come to find out there is not a shred of scientific evidence to support that
lowering cholesterol in this manner will reduce cardiovascular disease, compared to simply having
an LDL lower than 130.
Statins are also being pushed for prevention of a first heart attack in people with only moderate
cardiovascular risk. A careful analysis of the statistical data shows that such statin use may reduce
cardiovascular death by 1% in this preventive population over a ten year period. However, the
drugs kill 1% as a side effect, due to accidents, suicide, and infection. This means there is no
benefit at all, from a societal point of view, for wasting billions of dollars of taxpayer money on this
pointless preventive strategy.
The amount of money wasted on this fraudulent scheme is at least seven billion dollars a year,
money that is in essence stolen from hard working Americans. Class-action lawsuits have already
been filed against Pfizer for illegal Lipitor promotion, many are sure to follow.
Big Pharma and Government Corruption
The National Cholesterol Education Program is part of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
(NHLBI), meaning that it is part of our federal government and has an operating budget of about
one million dollars per year. In 2004 it selected a panel of nine "experts" to review statin drug use
and make recommendations as to guidelines doctors should follow to reduce cardiovascular
disease.
On July 13, 2004 these nine experts published their findings in the journal Circulation. Their paper
lists the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; American College of Cardiology Foundation;
American Heart Association as coauthors – meaning these various groups supported the findings.
Circulation failed to disclose that six of the nine authors had direct financial ties to the makers of
statin drugs. Those drugs include Pfizer's Lipitor; Bristol-Myers Squibb's Pravachol, Merck's
Lovastatin, and AstraZeneca's Crestor. For example, Newsday.com reported on July 14, 2004, "Dr.
H. Bryan Brewer, a physician-scientist at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, was one of
the guidelines' authors. He was the subject of a letter to the director of the National Institutes of
Health last week from a consumer watchdog, Public Citizen's Health Research Group. The
advocacy organization charged that Brewer had failed to disclose his ties to AstraZeneca. Brewer,
according to the letter, had written a glowing report in a medical journal about Crestor without
disclosing that he is a paid consultant and had presided over a company-sponsored symposium."
Even though these connections were slightly exposed in the media at the time, no action was taken
to review the credibility of the statin science by other less biased researchers. Instead, the public
relations buzz was that the statin "science" was solid.
The October 3 review in the Annals of Internal Medicine tears this "solid science" to shreds,
something that should have been done two years ago. The review explains the deceitful
manipulation of statistics and how not one study proves that lowering LDL cholesterol to the super
low levels recommended has any benefit in reducing cardiovascular disease. Simply put, this report
is shocking.
The New York Times did manage to report on this issue; however, the reporting is more a defense
of the status quo than a consumer wake-up call to a major health scam costing us billions of dollars.
The bottom line: there is no credible science, and there never was, that offered proof that lowering
cholesterol levels to physiologically abnormal levels reduced cardiovascular risk. Thus, basing a
broad governmental public health recommendation on no solid science is flat our wrong. Why
aren't these faulty recommendations being reversed?
The Extreme Dangers of Statin Drugs are Downplayed
In my book, Fight for Your Health: Exposing the FDA's Betrayal of America I spend several chapters
documenting all the clearly known risks of statin drugs, citing over 140 references. Even though it
is the most widely used drug in America, most doctors prescribing it are not aware of its many side
effects. Statins are known to disrupt energy production, weaken the adrenal glands, interrupt
vitamin D synthesis, block co-enzyme Q10 production, induce cardiomyopathy, damage kidneys,
weaken or damage muscles, and in a variety of situations increase cancer risk.
There are numerous reports of suicide, depression, and cognitive impairment from statin use.
Since many elderly patients are using statins, statins are likely to cause brain damage with ongoing
use. This is not difficult for anyone to understand. Brain cells contain higher levels of cholesterol in
their cell membranes, enabling nerve cells to survive longer. Nerve cells do not split and divide like
other cells in the body, thus they must have a higher level of cholesterol – this is normal. One clear
adverse effect of statins is lowering the nerve cell-membrane level of cholesterol, resulting in
premature cellular death. Maintaining proper levels of cholesterol in the brain is vital to normal
nerve function. This toxic effect of statins will be worse on a higher dose and nerve damage will
progressively accumulate over time. Doctors, mostly unaware they could be inducing cognitive
decline or neuropathy in their patients, may prescribe other brain medications to treat the decline
in nervous system function, thinking the symptoms are just part of the aging process. This is a
tragedy.
Another seldom mentioned adverse side effect of statins is that they directly interfere with immune
system function. Statin pushers like to claim this is a benefit, reducing inflammation. There is an
element of truth in this; however, there are much better ways to reduce inflammation than by use of
statins that actually block immune signals. The same system being blocked by statins is required
for a robust response to combat infection. The immune suppressing effects are so powerful statins
are being considered as adjunctive therapy for organ transplant patients. What happens to a
person's immune defense when they are on a super high dose of statins to lower cholesterol to
abnormally low levels? How is anybody on high-dose statin therapy supposed to fight the flu? What
happens if a pandemic flu strain hits? Guess which citizens won't make it?
It is more than alarming when scientists reviewing high-dose statin therapy state there is no science
to show that such therapy is safe. Where is the FDA when they are needed? Why isn't the FDA
requiring more testing before allowing doctors to use statins in an unapproved manner? Why is the
FDA attacking super-safe nutritional strategies to help Americans naturally and safely normalize
cholesterol levels?
There is good reason many Americans are turning to safe and effective natural options as part of a
health strategy to maintain cholesterol levels in a better range. This latest fiasco is proof that
government and Big Pharma work together to push drug sales, oftentimes disregarding the true
effects on human health. How much longer can Americans tolerate a government on the take from
Big Pharma?
Byron J. Richards, Founder/Director of Wellness Resources, is a Board-Certified Clinical
Nutritionist and nationally-renowned health expert, radio personality, educator, and author.
Richards encourages individuals to take charge of their health, stand up for their health rights, and
not blindly succumb to propaganda from the vested-interests who profit from keeping Americans
sick. Author of Mastering Leptin and Fight for Your Health, Richards is now joining forces with
health freedom leaders in the U.S. and throughout the world. Visit his health blog for up to date
happenings. www.truthinwellness.com
Author: Byron Richards 11/21/06
It had to happen sooner or later. On October 3, 2006, after extensive review of all studies relating
to cholesterol-lowering benefits by statin drugs, scientists reporting in the Annals of Internal
Medicine pulled the rug out from under the current government-sanctioned cholesterol levels for
reducing cardiovascular disease risk. Their conclusion, "current clinical evidence does not
demonstrate that titrating lipid therapy to achieve proposed low LDL cholesterol levels is beneficial
or safe." This is not a trivial issue. Many billions of taxpayer dollars have been wasted on the
cholesterol drug scam. The health and well being of millions of Americans may have been
compromised by reckless lowering of cholesterol, a substance that is vital to health and energy
production.
It has long been recognized that adults who have naturally lower cholesterol levels during their 40s
and 50s have less heart disease as they grow older. A large body of science supports the notion
that LDL cholesterol levels lower than 130 mg/dL is an excellent goal for one and all. How a person
should arrive at this goal is a matter of considerable debate. A good diet and exercise is the
foundation for any person's health program and for many this approach is adequate. The use of
nutritional supplements to help lower cholesterol, products that have virtually no side effects and
may be highly effective, is considered by the FDA to be an illegal health claim. Instead, the FDA
expects Americans to use statin drugs to accomplish this goal, even though the medications have a
general anti-energy effect and long list of potentially serious side effects that are not clearly
explained to those taking the medications or even to the doctors giving them out.
To make matters worse, several years ago the government-funded National Cholesterol Education
Program promoted new guidelines for the use of these drugs. It was recommend that individuals at
high cardiovascular disease risk attain LDL levels < 100 mg/dL and individuals at very high
cardiovascular risk attain LDL levels < 70 mg/dL. These are abnormally low levels of cholesterol,
meaning drugs must be used to create an artificially low level of LDL cholesterol, an unnatural
physiological condition. This is very difficult to do and requires high doses of statins, doubling or
tripling the dose, oftentimes combined with other drugs. Needless to say, such therapies are
extremely expensive and often do not work. These guidelines immediately boosted the sales of
statins from fifteen billion per year when the report was released in 2004 to over twenty-two billion
in 2005. And now we come to find out there is not a shred of scientific evidence to support that
lowering cholesterol in this manner will reduce cardiovascular disease, compared to simply having
an LDL lower than 130.
Statins are also being pushed for prevention of a first heart attack in people with only moderate
cardiovascular risk. A careful analysis of the statistical data shows that such statin use may reduce
cardiovascular death by 1% in this preventive population over a ten year period. However, the
drugs kill 1% as a side effect, due to accidents, suicide, and infection. This means there is no
benefit at all, from a societal point of view, for wasting billions of dollars of taxpayer money on this
pointless preventive strategy.
The amount of money wasted on this fraudulent scheme is at least seven billion dollars a year,
money that is in essence stolen from hard working Americans. Class-action lawsuits have already
been filed against Pfizer for illegal Lipitor promotion, many are sure to follow.
Big Pharma and Government Corruption
The National Cholesterol Education Program is part of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
(NHLBI), meaning that it is part of our federal government and has an operating budget of about
one million dollars per year. In 2004 it selected a panel of nine "experts" to review statin drug use
and make recommendations as to guidelines doctors should follow to reduce cardiovascular
disease.
On July 13, 2004 these nine experts published their findings in the journal Circulation. Their paper
lists the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; American College of Cardiology Foundation;
American Heart Association as coauthors – meaning these various groups supported the findings.
Circulation failed to disclose that six of the nine authors had direct financial ties to the makers of
statin drugs. Those drugs include Pfizer's Lipitor; Bristol-Myers Squibb's Pravachol, Merck's
Lovastatin, and AstraZeneca's Crestor. For example, Newsday.com reported on July 14, 2004, "Dr.
H. Bryan Brewer, a physician-scientist at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, was one of
the guidelines' authors. He was the subject of a letter to the director of the National Institutes of
Health last week from a consumer watchdog, Public Citizen's Health Research Group. The
advocacy organization charged that Brewer had failed to disclose his ties to AstraZeneca. Brewer,
according to the letter, had written a glowing report in a medical journal about Crestor without
disclosing that he is a paid consultant and had presided over a company-sponsored symposium."
Even though these connections were slightly exposed in the media at the time, no action was taken
to review the credibility of the statin science by other less biased researchers. Instead, the public
relations buzz was that the statin "science" was solid.
The October 3 review in the Annals of Internal Medicine tears this "solid science" to shreds,
something that should have been done two years ago. The review explains the deceitful
manipulation of statistics and how not one study proves that lowering LDL cholesterol to the super
low levels recommended has any benefit in reducing cardiovascular disease. Simply put, this report
is shocking.
The New York Times did manage to report on this issue; however, the reporting is more a defense
of the status quo than a consumer wake-up call to a major health scam costing us billions of dollars.
The bottom line: there is no credible science, and there never was, that offered proof that lowering
cholesterol levels to physiologically abnormal levels reduced cardiovascular risk. Thus, basing a
broad governmental public health recommendation on no solid science is flat our wrong. Why
aren't these faulty recommendations being reversed?
The Extreme Dangers of Statin Drugs are Downplayed
In my book, Fight for Your Health: Exposing the FDA's Betrayal of America I spend several chapters
documenting all the clearly known risks of statin drugs, citing over 140 references. Even though it
is the most widely used drug in America, most doctors prescribing it are not aware of its many side
effects. Statins are known to disrupt energy production, weaken the adrenal glands, interrupt
vitamin D synthesis, block co-enzyme Q10 production, induce cardiomyopathy, damage kidneys,
weaken or damage muscles, and in a variety of situations increase cancer risk.
There are numerous reports of suicide, depression, and cognitive impairment from statin use.
Since many elderly patients are using statins, statins are likely to cause brain damage with ongoing
use. This is not difficult for anyone to understand. Brain cells contain higher levels of cholesterol in
their cell membranes, enabling nerve cells to survive longer. Nerve cells do not split and divide like
other cells in the body, thus they must have a higher level of cholesterol – this is normal. One clear
adverse effect of statins is lowering the nerve cell-membrane level of cholesterol, resulting in
premature cellular death. Maintaining proper levels of cholesterol in the brain is vital to normal
nerve function. This toxic effect of statins will be worse on a higher dose and nerve damage will
progressively accumulate over time. Doctors, mostly unaware they could be inducing cognitive
decline or neuropathy in their patients, may prescribe other brain medications to treat the decline
in nervous system function, thinking the symptoms are just part of the aging process. This is a
tragedy.
Another seldom mentioned adverse side effect of statins is that they directly interfere with immune
system function. Statin pushers like to claim this is a benefit, reducing inflammation. There is an
element of truth in this; however, there are much better ways to reduce inflammation than by use of
statins that actually block immune signals. The same system being blocked by statins is required
for a robust response to combat infection. The immune suppressing effects are so powerful statins
are being considered as adjunctive therapy for organ transplant patients. What happens to a
person's immune defense when they are on a super high dose of statins to lower cholesterol to
abnormally low levels? How is anybody on high-dose statin therapy supposed to fight the flu? What
happens if a pandemic flu strain hits? Guess which citizens won't make it?
It is more than alarming when scientists reviewing high-dose statin therapy state there is no science
to show that such therapy is safe. Where is the FDA when they are needed? Why isn't the FDA
requiring more testing before allowing doctors to use statins in an unapproved manner? Why is the
FDA attacking super-safe nutritional strategies to help Americans naturally and safely normalize
cholesterol levels?
There is good reason many Americans are turning to safe and effective natural options as part of a
health strategy to maintain cholesterol levels in a better range. This latest fiasco is proof that
government and Big Pharma work together to push drug sales, oftentimes disregarding the true
effects on human health. How much longer can Americans tolerate a government on the take from
Big Pharma?
Byron J. Richards, Founder/Director of Wellness Resources, is a Board-Certified Clinical
Nutritionist and nationally-renowned health expert, radio personality, educator, and author.
Richards encourages individuals to take charge of their health, stand up for their health rights, and
not blindly succumb to propaganda from the vested-interests who profit from keeping Americans
sick. Author of Mastering Leptin and Fight for Your Health, Richards is now joining forces with
health freedom leaders in the U.S. and throughout the world. Visit his health blog for up to date
happenings. www.truthinwellness.com