High Cholesterol (Armolipid Plus)

I think with all posts on the Internet it can be dangerous for lay people, I am one those so nota medic to provide advise. However, what I can say is that I also have high Cholsterol levels but I am able to have an honest and frank discussion with my GP's about the risk and the types of medication I take. I am not on statins, I was I asked to be referred to the specialist Lipid Clinic in my area. Check and see if you have one and ask to be referred.

As we all know Cholsterol levels are dependant on many factors including stress. I suggest that you create a diary of what you eat, what exercise you do be that work, walking, house work, smoke, ethnicity, drink alcohol, in addition how you feel etc. Then go to the GP and explain the issues you have based on the facts you have. Remember if you have a 20% risk of having a heat attack you also have an 80% risk of not having one. If after consideration you decide to take statins keep the diary going then when you go back and see the GP present your facts and have a different discussion. Maybe I am fortunate but I have a GP who listens to me and asks me what would I like to do and why, often he agrees.

Life is about risk in its many guises. Often looking at a problem in a different light is a good thing. I hope this helps

I came off simvastatin because it elevated my joint pain.  My GP said give it a good couple of weeks to get it out of by system before she would prescribe something els.  In the meantime, though it won't make a gret difference, I am changing what I eat; not to drastically, I hasten to add.  I am now ready to try something else, sometimes it is trial and error and sometimes we can only do it with the help of pills.  Do as the doctor suggests, if you are not happy with them, stop, but let your system rid itself before trying something else.  We are all trying to live longer and statins are the "now" thing as far as the medical profession is concerned. depressing I know.  In a few years time it will be something else.  Not advice I know, but ......

I took 10mg Atorvastatin for aprox 9 months and it left me crippled with pain. It's taken almost a year to get back to where I was before taking statins. It cost me around £300 to visit a sports injury clinic to treat my achilles tendon injury - something Atorvastatin information sheet warns against. However, I agree that, as your LDL cholesterol is very high, you should do the 3 months test as you may find that Atorvastatin gives you no problems - we all react differently to medication. Good luck and keep us informed.

Have you tried other methods of reducing your cholesterol?  For example, exercise, high fibre supplements?   Those figures wouldn't have been regarded as high, let alone dangerously high, decades ago before the levels were reassessed by a US committe comprised of a majority of pharmaceutical companies ...... you work it out!

I've been off statins for a year now with no sign of any heart or other circulatory problems, despite being told by both gp and cardiologist that I was risking another heart attack (one mild, 4 years ago following trauma).   I was so ill on statins life wasn't worth living anyway so I made the difficult decision to stop taking them.

Non-statin cholesterol lowering drugs had the same negative effects, so I now bleieve it's a matter of lowering the cholesterol too far to be healthy.

I walk most days for 20-30 minutes and also do daily stretching  & upper body strength exercises, including 5 k weights, which also helps with my emphysema.

I'd suggest you try Psyllium Husk Powder, 4 tablespoons a day:  I add it to my porridge in the morning.  It MUST be taken in liquid because otherwise it can expand in your throat and choke you.     My cholesterol levels are slowly coming down and I hope this approach can work for you.

I'm nearly 68 by the way and overweight, smoked for more than 40 years but had already given up when I had the heart attack and was then diagnosed with COPD/emphysema a year later.

You don't have to put anything in your body you don't want:  ask your doctor if h/she takes statins and is h/she aware of the mounting evidence of long term permanent negative effects and that many people with high cholesterol don't have heart attacks and many without it, doj?  

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Hi Mojuan

Your C is not "dangerously" high.

In fact, according to your C ratio - which is Total C divided by HDL - then according to NHS guidelines you have little to worry about because your C ratio is less than 3.

Regards