Posted , 8 users are following.
Hi anyone had problems with Stomach on Atorvastatin , just been told i have problem with simvastatin by doc , and put on Atorvastatin . feel hundred times worse . aches ,pains, defecation problems. just generally feel tired all the time. why is Atorvastatin any better than Simvastatin , does simvastatin just do the same job or is it just cheaper atorvastatin than the Simvastatin for NHS to prescribe
0 likes, 14 replies
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loxie anthony51986
Posted
Simvastatin is off patent and is therefore the cheapest option so is the 'go to' first type prescribed. All statins have similar side effects if experienced as they do the same thing to the body. My doctor tried a number and all made me quite ill so I just decided I couldnt live like that anymore and dumped them all. They do their job - ie they reduce cholesterol - but they can also do a lot of damage to cognitive function, liver function and muscle degradation - you'll have to weigh up the risks regarding high cholesterol versus the risks of the disabling effects of the statins - has to be a personal choice but many on here will tell you of their horror stories on statins.
anthony51986 loxie
Posted
Hi loxie , when i went on N.I.C.E web page it said it is cheaper taking Atorvastatin , saving so many millions , than Simvastatin just now, but could just taking omega 3 oil work just as good ,plus low cholesterol diet ,the so called Mediterranean diet , When i had my bloods done the Nurse (not doc) said Omega 3 mopes up bad Cholesterol , forgot which one think LDL , And improves HDL , but could be other way around , See what i mean Statins affecting memory as well .lol
anthony51986 loxie
Posted
Hi Loxie , Creatine Kinases on statins , any idea in layman's terms what that means , just tried it but beyond my intelligence to understand ( statins again) noggin not workin .lol
loxie anthony51986
Posted
As far as I know (but bear with me I'm not an expert) CK is an enzyme which muscles need to be able to function. Many things can raise CK levels above normal and ways to reduce it include cutting back on vigorous exercise, don't take supplements containing creatine, reducing protein intake, eating more fibre, not drinking to excess. I have no idea if taking statins increases CK levels above normal - if they do it would explain why so many people experience dreadful muscle problems whilst taking them. Simvastatin was I think the first statin to come off patent, so maybe some doctors still go for that one first. I hear about more issues on that one than any others so maybe its time they had a rethink! Omega 3 fatty acids can help to reduce cholesterol and triglyceride levels - there was a lot of bad press about fish oils in the past because of the high concentration of heavy metals in some ocean areas - I seem to remember cod liver oil came in for a particular bashing. Some research I read said that mercury levels will be higher in a portion of fish than fish oil however, so maybe it was just scare tactics. HDL is the good one and LDL the 'bad' they should be in balance so it's more about the ratio of one to the other than bland overall cholesterol levels per se. I try to keep my views reasonable as I'm not qualified to give medical advice but really I personally think the whole saturating people with statins for the sake of it is just a big pharmaceutical profit scam and I want no more part of it.
anthony51986 loxie
Posted
Hi loxie , just been reading about Chitosan & butyrate for Cholesterol . you had any thoughts on it .
sue162 anthony51986
Posted
I was on Simvastatin and had terrible miscle atrophy. I was on them six months and felt so ill. That was 2014. I dont check my numbers now as I do all I can and life is too short at my age worrying. I cycle 80 or miles per week, try to eat well and my blood pressure is spot on. What I mean is I could be on statin have low cholesterol but unhealthy in other ways. I thought statins did the same job its just another brand name. Even the injections have side affects.
susan40017 anthony51986
Posted
both simvastatin and atorvastin are off patent now so price isnt anissue. They're both statins and work in the same way. i have very high cholesterol and have nowgot angina despite having taken highdoses of 2 different statins for 8 years. There was nothing wrong with me 9 years ago when i was out on them to prevent heart disease but they did nothing to prevent my heart disease and may even have been the causek of it. I now have catarracts that may have been caused by statins.
After doing a lot of research, I stopped taking them last July and changed my diet to a high fat (virgin olive oil and oily fish etc) low carbohydrate Mediterranean diet. I eat at least 10 eggs a weeks because they're rich in HDL cholesterol. My cholesterol shot up to 9.6 initially but now, my lipid results have improved without statins. My HDL has gone up and my LDL and Triglycerides have comedown.
The latest research says there is no normal range for cholesterol. We're all different but we do need to keep HDL high and LDL and triglycerides low. Read the book, The Pioppi Diet. Written by Dr Aseem Malhotra, a Cardiologist. It gives you all the information you need to know and all the evidence base research papers. I wont be taking statins again. I feel so much better without them. But you need to read it for yourself to make an informed decision.
anthony51986 susan40017
Posted
Hi susan , thanks for reply , I've just just been reading about Chitosan , you had any experience with it. some other stuff as well butyrate , more reading required by me though .
susan40017 anthony51986
Posted
I'd never heard of them so I had a quick look at what they are. I'm a nurse so I'm against alternative medical stuff . There's no clinical evidence to support any of them which is why the NHS doesn't use any of it. I highly recommend the Pioppi book as I said before because its totally evidence based.
anthony51986 susan40017
Posted
Hi Susan, funny story about eggs, i had piles when younger , so went as day case in hospital to have them cauterized , had mine done banded , few other people in same ward , but one man who add only been eating eggs because his wife had left him & did not know how to cook , 10 eggs a day , for over 6 months , but when he went down for surgery , the Surgeon had been sick all over the theater and fainted and cut his head open plus nurse slipped on his sick & broke her elbow , all because of the smell when he went in to do his piles .
Mick1542 anthony51986
Posted
I had to come off atorvarstatin after just 1 tablet.. Sent my blood pressure dangerously low. And now on my records it says am allergic..
doreen71825 Mick1542
Posted
Hya all my name is Doreen I have to say was on the forum some time ago. My levels are really high. However it is
a family history thing. I eat very healthy. and am really
very active every day. My levels are very high.
but it is due to my family make up as a lot of family are in the same position.
I have never drank alcohol,never smoked cigarettes. not overweight. eat lots of organic produce.
I have had several of the tablets including Primvastatin and Simvastatin.
This was when I was last on the forum. I became part of some research at the hospital. I had awful pains originally in my left arm from top elbow to hand . Then with Simvastatin
in the muscle leading from my hip bone to above my knee. Had to stop them. Took me an awful long time to get back
to being pain free. Was advised by my doctor last October
to try Atorvastatin, Was advised to try them taking 1/2 tablet.in the morning and the same in the evening. After doing this 3 times .I awoke in the middle of the night. I have never known such awfulness .It was as if lightning was striking around the crown of my head.I was crying out loud. I thought I was going to die. Never again will I try any of these tablets. I had been taking co-Enzyme
q10 before and felt great. Am back on them now and feeling a bit better. I do have a feeling in my head I will never be the same again.
wayne1962 doreen71825
Posted
Good on you Doreen. I was started on Artorvastatin at the highest dose over two years. Ruined my health. They then insisted on Simvastatin. They went straight in the bin. It took me years to recover - I still have negative effects. Last month the doc insisted on Ezetrol, which works on the gut instead of the liver. In a week I was covered in rash, indigestion probs and couldn't complete my usual workout. They saw the bin as well. Never again. It has been noted that the "safe" level of cholesterol was artificially lowered after the intro of statins in order to get millions more on them. they are money spinner and a gateway drug for a range of other issues. Never again.
susan40017 wayne1962
Posted
Wayne, you're absolutely right about the main reason we're all being put on them. The main advisor to the Dept of Health is Prof Rory Collins, Oxford University. His research unit is sponsored by a
pharmaceutical company that make statins, to the tune of thousands of £ every year and in 2017 he received a personal grant of £50,000. There may be more money involved but these are the amounts that are in the public domain.
There isn't a normal level of cholesterol. There may be a normal range but, as the range across the population is so wide, they just randomly picked a number and then kept lowering it every few years in order to get more people taking them.
Managing your risk of heart disease is better done by a change of lifestyle and diet.