The Controversy Over Taking Statins for Cholesterol: A Reassuring Truth About the Drug’s Side Effects
Worried about issues like muscle pain or dementia? Doctors say you can rest easy
Key Takeaways
- Most feared statin side effects are far less common than people believe and often temporary.
- Research suggests statins help prevent heart attacks and may potentially lower dementia risk.
- If one statin causes side effects, another medication or dose often solves the problem.
If your doctor has suggested statin therapy to lower your cholesterol levels, you may feel torn. These little pills are among the most prescribed medications in America, yet you’ve probably heard whispers about side effects like muscle pain, weight gain and even memory loss. So what’s the real story? Here’s what leading cardiologists want women to understand about the controversy over taking statins for cholesterol—and why, for most of us, the benefits far outweigh the risks.
What are statins?
Statins are prescription medications that block an enzyme in the liver responsible for producing cholesterol. That lowers your “bad” LDL cholesterol, the sticky kind that builds up in artery walls and sets the stage for cardiovascular events such as a heart attack and stroke.
“They have truly changed the trajectory of heart-disease care and prevention,” says preventive cardiologist Elizabeth Klodas, MD. Their impact is so significant, she notes, that piling on extra interventions often adds little benefit.
Woman's World Answers
For women over 50, statins can be especially valuable. As estrogen drops, LDL receptor activity slows, meaning your body clears cholesterol less efficiently. Your numbers can creep up even if your diet and lifestyle haven’t changed one bit.
The controversy over taking statins for cholesterol
According to U.S. Pharmacist, 34 percent of patients offered statins turned them down, mostly out of fear of side effects. Concerns about memory loss, depression, sleep issues, nerve damage and more have kept countless women from protecting their hearts.
But a landmark study in The Lancet, which analyzed data from more than 150,000 people, delivered reassuring news. “This large analysis of randomized clinical trials found that symptoms such as memory problems, depression, sleep disturbances, sexual dysfunction, nerve damage, lung disease and kidney disease occurred at similar rates in people taking placebo pills,” says Shannon Chatham, DO, a board-certified family medicine physician. “In other words, these symptoms were unlikely to be caused by statins.”
Even muscle pain—the side effect women worry about most—may not always be the medication’s fault. Research from the University of Oxford found that previous muscle problems, not statin use itself, were the strongest predictor of serious muscle disorders. In fact, 99.6 percent of study participants had a predicted 10-year risk below 10 percent of developing a serious muscle disorder from statins.
And that worry about statins and dementia? A 2018 meta-analysis found that just one year of statin use was associated with a 20 percent decrease in dementia risk. Statins may actually help protect the brain by reducing plaque in the arteries that feed it.
Statin side effects are usually mild and temporary
Statins aren’t completely side-effect free, but Dr. Klodas notes that 90 to 95 percent of people experience no ill effects at all. “It feels like taking a vitamin,” she says. “You take it once a day, morning or evening, and it doesn’t affect you at all—except that your blood tests improve.”
For the five to 10 percent who do notice issues, the most common statin side effects are:
- Muscle aches that typically appear within the first six months and often resolve when switching to a different statin
- Mild liver enzyme changes that usually return to normal on their own
- A small increase in blood sugar that slightly raises long-term diabetes risk
- Occasional cognitive changes, like feeling less sharp, which are typically reversible when they occur
Worried about weight gain? Clinical trials show statin-related weight gain is minimal—about half a pound over four years, according to Tracy Paeschke, MD, a preventive cardiologist. Any weight creep usually comes from a false sense of security that leads to less careful eating, not the drug itself.
The good news: Nearly all these effects are dose-dependent and reversible. If one statin drug bothers you, another often won’t.
Busting the statin controversy myth
Statins fall into two main categories—water-soluble ones like rosuvastatin (Crestor) and fat-soluble ones like atorvastatin (Lipitor). If one causes trouble, switching to the other often solves the problem, explains Judith Goldfinger, MD, a clinical cardiologist at Mount Sinai West.
If you’re experiencing unwanted side effects, don’t stop taking a prescribed statin on your own without talking to your doctor first. A new study in JAMA Network Open found that adults 75 and older who stopped their statins had a 28 to 32 percent higher risk of heart attack, stroke or cardiovascular death. “High cholesterol and plaque buildup are often silent conditions,” says Nandini Nair, MD, cardiologist at Penn State Health.
The bottom line: If you have concerns, bring them to your doctor. Chances are, there’s a statin—and a dose—that will keep your heart healthy without making you miserable.
Conversation
All comments are subject to our Community Guidelines. Woman's World does not endorse the opinions and views shared by our readers in our comment sections. Our comments section is a place where readers can engage in healthy, productive, lively, and respectful discussions. Offensive language, hate speech, personal attacks, and/or defamatory statements are not permitted. Advertising or spam is also prohibited.
