The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is responsible for a lot of health-related issues. Among other responsibilities, the FDA issues warnings about medication side effects and problems. Recently, they released a new set of guidelines designed to help doctors and patients better manage the use of statins for treating high cholesterol. The following sections present information that can help you better understand these guidelines and how they affect you.
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When left undiagnosed or untreated, high LDL levels can become deadly, as they can lead to coronary heart disease and high blood pressure. These conditions increase your risk for a major vascular event, such as a heart attack or stroke. For decades, doctors have tried to reduce cholesterol levels by prescribing medications and lifestyle changes.
Diet and exercise can go a long way toward reducing cholesterol levels, but sometimes these measures aren’t enough. The most common high cholesterol treatment is a statin. Statin medications are designed to reduce LDL levels in the blood. For most people, statins safely lower LDL levels.
Most people with high cholesterol who start taking statins will need to do so for the rest of their lives. However, some may be able to stop if they successfully lower their cholesterol levels through diet, weight loss, exercise, or some other means.
These medicines aren’t for everyone. In light of their possible side effects, the FDA released new guidelines that can help patients and their physicians effectively monitor potential side effects and issues caused by statin medicines.
Cholesterol-lowering statin medications have a long history of successfully treating and lowering cholesterol levels. The longer people take statins, the more science learns about the possible side effects. That’s why the FDA recently released new guidelines for statin use. Decades of research and study revealed a few important issues.
- A warning that statins may cause cognitive impairment. These issues include memory loss, confusion, and forgetfulness.
- A notice that routine liver enzyme monitoring is no longer necessary. Liver enzyme tests were used for decades as a way to catch potential liver damage. However, the FDA has found that these checks aren’t effective. The new recommendation: Doctors should perform a liver enzyme test before statin use begins. Then patients should be checked again if symptoms of liver damage appear.
- A warning that people taking statins may experience increased blood sugar levels and may develop type 2 diabetes. People taking statins should have their blood-sugar levels checked regularly.
- A warning that those taking lovastatin, a type of statin medication, are at risk for muscle damage. People taking this type of medicine should be aware of this possible drug interaction.
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Exercise
Individuals diagnosed with high cholesterol should try to get 40 minutes of aerobic exercise three to four times a week. Ideal activities include brisk walking, bicycling, swimming, or even dancing.
Diet
Good eating habits can also help reduce your risk of complications, lower your cholesterol, and prevent other conditions. The AHA and ACC recommend people eat at least four to five servings of both fruits and vegetables each day. People with high cholesterol should also aim to eat more whole grains, nuts, and low-fat dairy products. They should limit the amount of meat, poultry, and fish they eat to no more than 6 ounces per day.
People with high cholesterol should reduce their sodium intake. The average American eats