Cholesterol medication can lead to diabetes: Study
The patients who
were prescribed cholesterol-lowering statins had at least double the risk of
developing Type 2 diabetes,
suggests a study. The study published in the ‘Diabetes/Metabolism Research and
Reviews’ analysed health records and other data from patients to
provide a real-world picture of how efforts to reduce heart disease may be
contributing to another major medical concern, said Victoria Zigmont, who led
the study.
Statins are a
class of drugs that can lower cholesterol and blood pressure,
reducing the risk of heart attack and stroke.
Researchers
found that statin users had more than double the risk of diabetes diagnosis
compared to those who didn’t take the drugs. Those who took the
cholesterol-lowering drugs for more than two years had more than three times
the risk of diabetes. “The fact that increased duration of statin use was
associated with an increased risk of diabetes —
something we call a dose-dependent relationship — makes us think that this is
likely a causal relationship,” Zigmont said.
“That said,
statins are very effective in preventing heart attacks and strokes. I would
never recommend that people stop taking the statin they’ve been prescribed
based on this study, but it should open up further discussions about diabetes
prevention and patient and provider awareness of the issue.” Researchers also
found that statin users were 6.5 per cent more likely to have a troublingly
high HbA1c value, a routine blood test for diabetes that estimates average
blood sugar over several months.
The study
included 4,683 men and women who did not have diabetes, were candidates for
statins based on heart disease risk and had not yet taken the drugs at the
start of the study. About 16 per cent of the group — 755 patients — were
eventually prescribed statins during the study period, which ran from 2011
until 2014. Participants’ average age was 46. Randall Harris, a study co-author
and professor of medicine, said that the results suggested that individuals taking
statins should be followed closely to detect changes in glucose metabolism and
should receive special guidance on diet and exercise for prevention.
13.08.2019
Once you need less, you will have more
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