Statins-The Anti-Inflammatory Connection

December 4, 2022

Statin medications have been referred to as the "king" for lowering total and LDL cholesterol.

The position of many in the medical arena supports the idea that lowering cholesterol will save us from a deadly cardiovascular incident.

Although it does seem clear that statins can contribute to a decrease in the incidence of cardiovascular mortality, the question we all must ask is... what do statins really do?

Before we take you on this new journey of statins let's take a look at some of the problems associated with statin usage.

It is well documented that statins deplete the body of the powerful anti-oxidant, Co-Enzyme Q10 (CoQ10). CoQ10 plays a vital role in proper functioning of the mitochondria, which produce our cellular and systemic energy.

Here is what we all need to know.Mitochondria are cellular powerhouses and are extremely dense in the heart and other muscles.

Here is the big surprise...The health of the mitochondria plays a critical role in insulin sensitivity. Insulin resistance plays a major role in cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, fatigue, liver disease and inflammation.

So can it possibly mean that by damaging the mitochondria, statins can lead to insulin resistance? It appears so!

So here is what we now know. Statin medications deplete the all important Co-Enzyme Q10 leading to mitochondria dysfunction. This may in fact lead to heart failure, diabetes and cognitive dysfunction.

So with all of the above stated lets explore another reason that statins offer some benefits to reduce cardiovascular mortality.

Is it just by lowering LDL or Total Cholesterol? This seems less likely given the statistics that 50% of heart attacks occur in people with normal cholesterol.

So what else is it about statins that create benefits for cardiovascular health?

Their answer seems to be their anti-inflammatory benefits.

It is now well documented that cardiovascular disease is primarily an inflammatory disease.

By reducing coronary inflammation and insulin resistance, which will generally and quite naturally lower  LDL cholesterol as well as inflammation we can surmise that atherosclerosis can be controlled.

The bottom line is statins do indeed reduce cardiovascular mortality by reducing inflammation but remember at the cost of increasing insulin resistance and other potential side effects.

At this point, we should do everything in our power to reduce and stop insulin resistance thereby getting to the root cause of inflammation and cardiovascular disease. The side effect of this approach is looking and feeling younger and healthier.

We highly recommends watching the TED talk "Making Heart Attacks History" by Caldwell Esseltyn, whose research study shows a reduction in cardiovascular risk of 40 times through dietary change alone.

It is important to firmly understand that insulin resistance is one of the major players in inflammation. There are also numerous inexpensive laboratory tests that can be predictive of inflammation and cardiac risk.

At your next appointment, talk to us about dietary changes to prevent insulin resistance and cardiovascular risk.

Compliments from Functional Medicine Universitywww.FunctionalMedicineUniversity.com

Writen by Dr. John Nieters, DAOM, L.Ac, M.Sc. CFMP