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Statin and Zetia Myopathy

ellen128
0 Recommendations

I am unable to take statins or zetia - the leg pain is so severe. My cholesterol now is 499 - as I have familial dyslipidemia and am on no meds. Is there anyone out there who can relate to this? Any suggestions? Red yeast rice? Welchol?

I am also so disgusted with my doctor for this - he does not return calls. I need to switch doctors.

I also need some support and help from all of you out there who may have had to deal with this horrid and painful myopathy. Thanks!

Explore topics in this discussion:

Exercise High cholesterol Lovastatin Lipitor Zetia Niacin Pain Atherosclerosis Weakness Heart attack Peripheral neuropathy Prozac

25 replies

grace5

Ellen, believe me, you are not alone, there are quite a few of us here who have suffered the same side effects and cannot tolerate statins, I'm one of them.
Red yeast rice will likely cause you the same problems, it contains lovastatin I believe, the basis of all statin drugs. Here's what I take.

Fish Oil Supplements.
A lot has been said about the cholesterol lowering effects of omega 3 fatty acids and fish oil.
Garlic
In a large study of 220 patients, the garlic group took 800 milligrams of a powdered garlic for four months. This group experienced a 12 percent drop in cholesterol and a 17 percent drop in triglycerides. The placebo group had little change.
Flax Seed
Flaxseed is a whole grain that can be found in health food stores and some supermarkets.
In one study by Bahram Arjmandi, Ph.D., of Oklahoma State University, supplements of ground flax seed were given to 38 women with extremely high cholesterol levels were given bread and muffins containing 38 g of either sunflower or flaxseed four times daily.
After six weeks, flaxseed result to reduce cholesterol was: total cholesterol was reduced by 6.9 percent and LDL (bad) cholesterol by 14.7 percent.

I've pasted a link to a brilliant article that I believe every woman should read. I hope this helps!
All the best,
Lidia xx

http://www.futuremedicine.com/doi/pdf/10.2217/14796678.5.1.1

Winglover

I have had good success with Fishoil, Flaxseed and slow release Niacin.

Lisa

ellen128

much appreciated. i cannot tolerate niacin, but i will try the fish oil and flaxseed

Hrt2Hrt

I also cannot take statins or Zetia. I have had some success with 1200 mg of Red Yeast Rice. I had liver enzymes checked about 4 or 5 months ago and this does not have the effect that statins did. I recently started taking a better brand of fish oil by Metagenics. Hoping for good results on next blood work. Also using some other supplements that have been noted for high cholesterol and triglycerides. Will report if they are beneficial. Hrt2Hrt

ellen128

can you tell me what brand of red yeast rice and how much you are taking. i am really freakin' about this situation where i cannot take the meds...and knowing that i do need to take measures to reduce my total cholesterol reading. thanks!

Hrt2Hrt

The Red Yeast Rice is NOW Brand and is in a white bottle with dark blue or purple and orange label. It is a 1200mg tablet (not a capsule). Hope this helps. Hrt2Hrt

ellen128

thank you - i will try to find this brand

searchingsoul

Take 100 mg CoEnzyme Q 10 as well.

ellen128

thanks so much! let me know how you are doing.

ellen128

please keep me informed about what is working for you.

thanks!

pclipper

Vitacost.com <newsletter@vitacost.com>
CoQ10 & ToCoQ10 up to 83% off!

Speaking of CoQ10, got this link from someone on the list, and it is MUCH cheaper, and now on sale!

Penny

ellen128

thank you.

ellen128

I have begun taking Flaxseed Oil 3x daily and plan to pick up the powdered garlic etc.

I have spoken with my doc's assistant who reassured me that my hdl is good and my triglycerides are low - so we need to really just concentrate on the bigtime elevated ldl.

take care, and thanks!

kathysheart

Ellen try taking the 400 of Coenzyme Q10 and Fish oil. The statins deplete the muscle of coenzyme q 10 and also you loose some naturally as you age. I also have familia hyperlipidemia and tried treating it with diet and exercise because I did not like the statin side effects. I have also had 1 heart attack, 9 angioplasties, 5 stents, and 2 bypass surgeries (just turned 52 and exercise 90 minutes per day and weigh 120 lbs, and consistenly take in less than 150 mg of cholesterol a day). Bottom line....you have to take it. I currently take 80 mg of lipitor and 2,000 of niaspan, fish oil, and co q10. LDL down to 120 and HDL 65 at last test which is so much better than and LDL of 435 and HDL of 70. Yeah my muscles ache, sometimes really bad, but I have chance of staying around. Good luck

ellen128

that is fine, but i am not taking statins. thank you so much.

ellen128

ARE you aware that if you suffer muscle pain from statins, it can cause a lot of damage to your muscles?

ellen128

No, I am not going to take the statins because I get such pain that it is unbearable. Thanks for your response, though. I believe something will be discovered which will help us other than statins.

Keep in touch, and thanks.

Trissie

I can't tolerate statins, but have beeen on zetia for several years, are you saying that my leg pains might be from zetia?

ellen128

Definitely - look it up online. What kind of leg pains do you have, and when did they start?

Sarcasma40

Green Tea- Green Tea- Green Tea !!!!!

Raises the good lowers the bad. Three 6-8 ounce cups a day.

Many more wonderful health benefits as well. Please check into this.

Also powdered ceyanne pepper. 1/4 teaspoon twice a day in 1-2 ounces of water. Slosh around in your mouth about three seconds and swallow. Now I know what your thinking, but it is not as bad as it sounds. And don't worry if you have reflux issues. Cayenne heals every tissue it touches. Melts fat off the body and helps to break up cholesterol.

Study these gifts of the earth and see if I am not telling the truth.
Good luck and love and peace to all,
Stacey

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