It is said that drugs are divided into three parts, and statins inevitably have some [poison], of which liver toxicity is the most concerned.
I don’t know why, the hepatotoxicity of statins is widely circulated among patients. When prescribing drugs, patients often ask [is statins very toxic to liver? ] Or directly [statins have great hepatotoxicity, I don’t want to take this medicine, the doctor will change it for me.]
Whenever this time, I am really in distress situation.
Apart from hepatotoxicity, statins have a lot of [negative news]! Which are true and which are false?
Rumor: Statins are very harmful to the liver.
Truth: Most drugs can cause liver damage, and statins are no exception.
As early as 2012, the official website of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a message:
It is suggested to delete the stipulation in the original description of statins that [patients taking statins need routine and regular monitoring of liver enzymes]. It is recommended that liver enzymes should be detected before taking statins, and then liver enzymes should be detected only when clinically necessary.
In translation, In the past, we required patients taking statins to regularly monitor liver enzymes. After research, it is found that this monitoring is not very necessary, so patients taking statins in the future only need to check once before taking the medicine. After taking the medicine, liver enzyme indexes do not need to be regularly reviewed, and liver enzyme monitoring after taking the medicine is only needed when the receiving doctor thinks it is necessary.
FDA experts explained that the reason for this amendment is that after investigation and statistics, liver damage caused by statins is found to be rare, and serious liver damage is even rarer and unpredictable.
This shows that patients do not need to refuse to take statins because they are too worried about the impact of statins on the liver.
It should be noted that China’s guidelines still recommend regular review of liver function when statins are used for treatment.
Rumor: Statins can’t stop taking them once they are taken.
Truth: Not all patients taking statins need to take drugs for life.
Depending on the purpose of taking statins, the length of taking statins varies.
If only the blood lipid is high, The clinical manifestations and high risk factors of unintentional brain diseases and other diseases, Then the blood lipid control in the normal level can stop the drug. Need to emphasize that the standard of stopping the drug needs to be judged by doctors, and must not stop the drug at will. After stopping the drug, control the blood lipid through diet and review it regularly. If there is no increase in blood lipid, there is no need to take statins again.
However, if it is coronary heart disease patients need to take it for a long time, even if cholesterol has been controlled within the normal level, they also need to take it for a long time or even for life. This is because statins can not only control blood lipid, but also stabilize atherosclerotic plaques, prevent plaque rupture to form thrombosis, and reduce the risk of malignant diseases such as myocardial infarction.
Rumor: Statins Accelerate Aging.
Truth: This is just a malicious slander.
There is no scientific basis for statins to accelerate body aging.
According to the investigation, the statins [red alert] incident, which was widely publicized on the Internet before, was obviously the product of the commercial operation of health care products.
The publicity said that if you are taking statins, please throw them away and use their recommended alternative therapy products, namely 4 plant health products that have been [proven] to naturally reduce cholesterol.
This is a rumor made to promote health care products.
Whether or not to stop a drug must be decided after communicating with your doctor. If the drug is not suitable for you, the doctor will help you find a suitable alternative therapy drug.
There are so many rumors, let’s look at the truth.
Truth: Avoid grapefruit when taking statins.
Grapefruit can inhibit the metabolism of statins in the body, In this way, the metabolism of statins is delayed, which can increase the concentration of some statins in the body several times or even hundreds of times. Obviously, such concentration is not the concentration at which statins exert normal drug effect, and will induce side effects of statins, especially myolysis.
In addition to grapefruit, high-fiber foods should also be avoided at the same time as statins. High-fiber foods will affect the absorption of statins, make the concentration in the body not reach the optimal concentration, and weaken the effect of statins.
Truth: Taking statins has more advantages than disadvantages,
There are so many rumors about statins, but for those who need statins, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.
Some research results also show that the benefits of statins in preventing cardiovascular diseases outweigh the risks brought by their adverse reactions.