If your doctor discovers that you have high blood levels of cholesterol and/or triglycerides, you will typically be given approximately six weeks to try and get your levels down through diet and exercise. The usual recommendation is to follow a low fat, high carbohydrate diet. This doesn’t work for the majority of people since carbohydrates promote insulin release, which stimulates cholesterol production. The next recommendation is to take medication.
The major classes of cholesterol lowering drugs are Statins. Drug names and brand names: Atorvastatin (Lipitor), simvastatin (Lipex, Simvar, Zocor), pravastatin (Pravachol), lovastatin (Mevacor, Altocor), fluvastatin (Lescol, Vastin).
How do statins work These are the most widely prescribed lipid lowering drags. In 1987 lovastatin became the first approved statin in the USA. These drugs inhibit the enzyme HMG-CoA reductase, which is responsible for producing cholesterol in the liver. Statins can lower cholesterol levels by 20-60% by reducing cholesterol production, and improving the liver’s ability to get rid of LDL “bad” cholesterol from the bloodstream. Blood levels of triglycerides usually come down too. New research has shown that statin drags may lower the risk of heart disease through a different mechanism than cholesterol reduction. Studies have shown that statins can lower blood levels of C-reactive protein (CRP); a marker of inflammation in the body, and a major risk factor for heart disease. You can read more about C-reactive protein in chapter eight. Statins are taken in the evening, as most cholesterol production occurs at night.
Side effects of statins: According to medical literature and the pamphlets inside the box of statins, they are well tolerated and side effects are rare; occurring in less than two percent of the population. The most common side effects are said to be constipation, flatulence, abdominal pain and indigestion. In reality, many people experience far worse side effects. More and more potential side effects are recently being discovered, exposing the fact that statins are not the wonder drags they are marketed as.

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