Health attacks are more common when you take statin drugs
qimono / Pixabay – Heart attacks are more common when you take statin drugs

The New England Journal of Medicine reported that at least 250,000 heart attacks last year could have been prevented by controlling inflammation. These 250,000 heart attacks represent 20% of the total 1,250,000 heart attacks annually.

Half of the total heart attacks occurred in people with normal cholesterol levels. You have the same risk of heart attack with high cholesterol compared to people with normal levels of cholesterol. Maybe cholesterol is not the correct indicator or marker of your heart health? The New England Journal of Medicine stated that controlling inflammation might be a better way to prevent cardiovascular events.

Statin drugs sold under a variety of names including Lipitor(atorvastatin), Zocor (simvastatin), Mevacor (lovastatin) and Pravachol (pravastatin) are prescribed to lower cholesterol and supposedly to reduce the risk of heart disease. Statin drugs block or shut down your body’s production of cholesterol by inhibiting the enzyme HMG-CoA reductase. By inhibiting this enzyme, your body’s production of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is blocked.

CoQ10 is the key to energy production in every cell in your body. Your heart uses more energy than any other organ and has a higher concentration of CoQ10. Statin drugs block this enzyme. If you are taking statin drugs and have a concern, please consult your doctor about adding a CoQ10 supplement.

Interestingly enough, there are two United State Patents (4,933,165 and 4,929,437) filed in 1990 by one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world that added CoQ10 to their statin drug. To my knowledge, this statin drug with a CoQ10 supplement has never been released to the public.

CoQ10 supplements are not affected by statin drugs. The best reference book that I’ve found on CoQ10 was written by Dr. Emile Bliznakov wrote “The Miracle Nutrient Coenzyme Q10” in 1998. CoQ10 supplements do not prevent any of the current side effects caused by statin drugs, although some researchers believe that muscle and joint pain might be reduced with CoQ10 supplementation. If you have muscle and joint pain from taking statin drugs, check with your doctor before adding CoQ10 supplements to your diet.

If you are truly concerned about having high cholesterol, there are some things you can do to reduce cholesterol without taking statin drugs. Avoid trans-fats, refined sugars, reduced-fat milk and powdered milk products. Supplements to be considered are cod liver oil, evening primrose and borage or black currant oil. Eat plenty of saturated fats and foods high in copper. Use coconut oil and coconut products. I personally mix coconut oil and olive oil (half and half) for frying foods.

Statin drugs block your body’s production of cholesterol and CoQ10. Additionally, statin drugs block dolichols which target proteins based on your DNA’s instruction. Blocking dolichols can lead to your cells responding chaotically because of dolichol deficiency. The immediate precursor of cholesterol is squalene. Researchers have found that squalene inhibits blood vessels formation in tumors.

CoQ10 supplements can be found with the name ubiquinone or ubiquinol. Ubiquinone is the primary commercially available CoQ10 supplement being sold in stores and over the Internet. If the label of the CoQ10 bottle doesn’t specifically state ubiquinone or ubiquinol, it is most likely ubiquinone. Ubiquinone is the oxidized form of CoQ10. Your body will convert ubiquinone to ubiquinol.

Ubiquinol is the reduced form of CoQ10 – it is not oxidized. As such, ubiquinol is the antioxidant form of CoQ10 which neutralizes the free radical damage. Not all of the ubiquinone you ingest is converted to ubiquinol. Approximately 90% of ubiquinone is converted to ubiquinol in healthy young people.

As you age, your body makes less CoQ10 and converts less ubiquinone to ubiquinol. Therefore, if you are older and have a choice, take ubiquinol. I have read some articles that state ubiquinol is six to eight times more effective compared to ubiquinone in those people over 50 years of age. Supplements with ubiquinol generally cost three times those with ubiquinone.

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *