Statin use is linked to increased (or decreased) risk of developing diabetes, warn researchers

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-05/bmj-sui052213.php

[font face=Serif]Public release date: 23-May-2013

Contact: Stephanie Burns
[e-mail]
44-020-738-36920
BMJ-British Medical Journal

[font size=5]Statin use is linked to increased risk of developing diabetes, warn researchers[/font]

[font size=4]But some statins can reduce risk of diabetes[/font]

[font size=3]Treatment with high potency statins (especially atorvastatin and simvastatin) may increase the risk of developing diabetes, suggests a paper published today on bmj.com.

Statins are among the most widely prescribed medications for the prevention of cardiovascular events. Although tolerated well, an association with new-onset diabetes has recently been suggested. One trial suggested a 27% increased risk of diabetes with rosuvastatin whereas another suggested patients taking pravastatin benefitted from a 30% lower risk.

As there is limited data on this subject, researchers from Canada carried out a population-based study on 1.5 million residents in Ontario, Canada to examine the association between individual statin use and new-onset diabetes.

All patients were aged 66 and over and started statin therapy between 1997 and 2010. The median age was 73 years. Follow up ended either at the end of 2010 or a maximum of five years following the initiation of statins, whichever came first. The primary outcome was incident diabetes.

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http://www.bmj.com/content/346/bmj.f3156/rr/647062

[earthside]

1. Statins are dangerous.

I recommend the new book 'The Great Cholesterol Myth'.

There is scant evidence that high bad cholesterol causes heart disease ... yet doctors prescribe statin drugs to people at the slightest indications of high LDL. The drug industry is making billions and billions of dollars on these unnecessary and potentially dangerous drugs.

I'm not surprised by the findings of this research.

[hedgehog]

2. The paper compared patients on one group of statins with patients on another group of statins,

so it is comparing statin to statin, not statin use to no statin use. I would be untested in matching two groups of people with the same cholesterol numbers to see five year outcomes regarding both diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

[goldent]

3. The fact that statins can either increase or decrease your chance of getting diabetes

makes this article not-so-useful.

[happyslug]

4. I have been on Statin for over 20 years, and this was a KNOWN problem 20 years ago

Thus, when you are on Statins you are to have your blood check every six months or so. I slowly watched by Diabetes count go up till my doctor decided to put me on diabetes medication.

By the way, my Cholesteroll count when I started was over 800, Tricyrides were over 400, both are now below 200 (and that was with a lot of exercise). I am on Lipitor (a Statlin), Tricor (a Fenofibrate), Naicin (B3), Fish oil, aspirn and now my Diabetes medication.

Naicin is the oldest of these medications (Over 50 years old) and the only one known to convert LDL with HDL Cholesterol (Tricor and other "Fibrates" increase HDL and lower LDC Cholesterol but it does not seem to be a conversion like Naicin does).

I can NOT complain to much about them, my aginia disappeared after I started to take them. Diet and exercise was NOT enough for me.