[carol_piirto]

This probably will never happen to you or anyone you know, but I want to share awareness, nevertheless.
*****Last year, the FDA put out a warning on Lipitor that it can cause amnesia and memory loss. ****** The doctor at Georgetown Hospital explained it was because the statin in Lipitor was 'attracted to the fat in the brain'. (Probably a lay explanation)

My story:
My 71 year old sister had taken Lipitor for one year. One month ago, she became so confused, not knowing:
That she had lived in New York for 25 years,
The name of her sisters and brother,
That she had been an editor,
Where she currently lived,
The names of her friends,
That she had a cat etc. etc.
In fact, she knew nothing except her own name. In her confusion, she fell and broke her ankle.
We got her into the hospital and they did a bevy of tests to the tune of 50,000 dollars. All turned out normal ! Thankfully, my brother found the FDA warning about Lipitor and asked the doctors. They immediately took her off of Lipitor and replaced it with Crestor.

TWO DAYS. It took two days for her memory and personality to return to normal!!!
She is now in rehab for her ankle and is to return home in a week.

Again, I'm sure this will never happen. But, if there is a slim chance that it has or will, I want to share our experience so that maybe it will help you.
Be well, Carol

[784caroline]

Any and all drugs can have side effects and it can effect each person differently or not at all. I know someone with a similar story that was related to back pain/muscle weakness while they were taking lipitor. In this case however the Dr, knowing the potential side effects, took them off Lipitor for 3 months but there was no discerable difference..... so back on Lipitor for the alternative drug was not working as good to keep the colestrol low.

Taking any drug is trial and error and you were forunate enough to identify the culprit to a problem. However from what I read Lipitor is a major life saving drug.....but, the cautions on every drug bottle are there for a reason ...read them.

[Bryant]

I took Lipitor for 10 years with no side effects. Then one day started having leg pain. I came off it and tried several others including Red Rice Yeast. Had leg pain (more like aches that came and went) with all.

[PR1234]

Hubby and I took Lipitor for several years with no problem. Slowly, I became more and more foggy headed. Finally I got to the point that I told my husband I shouldn't be driving as I couldn't even figure out what I was doing or where I was going! After reading several articles about Statins, I stopped it cold turkey (which I know I shouldn't have) and within a week I was back to 'normal'. Dr wasn't too happy about it....but at this point he doesn't have a choice, it is my life and my body I know what works and what doesn't. I am now enrolled in a 13 wk program trying to learn better eating habits and lose weight.

[PR1234]

BTW, read this book for some real eye openers about Cholesterol and Statins. The Great Cholesterol Myth: Why Lowering Your Cholesterol Won't Prevent Heart Disease-and the Statin-Free Plan... by Jonny Bowden and Dr. Stephen Sinatra

[PR1234]

Great segment with Dr. Oz and Dr. Sinatra
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swrKkwlnSnI]The Doctors Who Say Everything You Know About Cholesterol Is Wrong - YouTube[/ame]

[rubicon]

Originally Posted by PR1234

BTW, read this book for some real eye openers about Cholesterol and Statins. The Great Cholesterol Myth: Why Lowering Your Cholesterol Won't Prevent Heart Disease-and the Statin-Free Plan... by Jonny Bowden and Dr. Stephen Sinatra

Don't tell that to the people commenting on the Mediterranean or Okinana Diets threads listed here. cholesterol is the culprit. I happen to agree with you that cholestrol is being over-stated and also believe the doc are on to something by studying inflammation as a cause.

[Villages PL]

Originally Posted by rubicon

Don't tell that to the people commenting on the Mediterranean or Okinana Diets threads listed here. cholesterol is the culprit. I happen to agree with you that cholestrol is being over-stated and also believe the doc are on to something by studying inflammation as a cause.

The lesson to be learned by studying the various diets is this. The U.S. diet is the worst (causing the most heart attacks and strokes) because it contains the most animal protein and the most processed foods. That means lots of cholesterol and lots of imflammation.

The Mediterranean diet is better than the U.S. diet because more emphasis is put on fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains olive oil, fish, and lean meat.
Overall, I believe animal-protein consumption is a lot less than in the U.S.. Therefore there's a lot less cholesterol and inflammation.

The Okinawan diet causes the least amount of heart attacks and strokes because it contains only a small fraction of the animal protein contained in the above diets and processed foods are kept to a bare minimum. The least amount of animal protein and processed foods translates to the least amount of cholesterol and inflammation.

The vegan diet may be even better than the Okinawan diet because it has the least amount of cholesterol, and no animal protein to cause inflammation. Although inflammation can be caused by eating processed/refined foods.

[justjim]

I have been on Lipitor for the last 10 years with no known side effects. But some good "points" have been made in this Thread worth my attention in the future. As mentioned, certain drugs effect different people in different ways. "Heck", Iam "foggy" enough these days without help from some drug!

[bkcunningham1]

Originally Posted by PR1234

Hubby and I took Lipitor for several years with no problem. Slowly, I became more and more foggy headed. Finally I got to the point that I told my husband I shouldn't be driving as I couldn't even figure out what I was doing or where I was going! After reading several articles about Statins, I stopped it cold turkey (which I know I shouldn't have) and within a week I was back to 'normal'. Dr wasn't too happy about it....but at this point he doesn't have a choice, it is my life and my body I know what works and what doesn't. I am now enrolled in a 13 wk program trying to learn better eating habits and lose weight.

I found the Dr. Oz video clip very interesting. Thank you for posting. Would you mind sharing information about your 13 week program? My husband stopped taking Lipitor after using it for years. It never really lowered his cholesterol levels but it nearly crippled him. His knees ached and hurt so badly it was to a point he could barely walk. He stopped taking it and his knees nearly instantly improved.

He has been taking red yeast rice capsules now for about six months. His cholesterol levels haven't improved. They haven't increased. They've stayed the same and maybe a little lower than when he was on the Lipitor.

I'm not a health care professional and would never advise anyone to stop taking a prescription medicine without consulting your physician. I'm just sharing my husband's experience. Again, thanks for the video and any other information you would kindly share.

[PR1234]

This is the website for where I am going. It was recommended by my Dr.

Total Nutrition & Therapeutics

[Villages PL]

In the book, "The China Study" the author found a correlation between cholesterol and diseases of all kinds. In general, the higher the level of cholesterol the higher the level of diseases in various regions of China. So it surprises me to hear people say that cholesterol is not important.

It may depend on where the emphasis is put. Trans fat and saturated fat increase LDL cholesterol and inflammation. I think the two of them often go together. So if you are concentrating on lowering dietary cholesterol you likely will be lowering inflammation too.

However, there are many foods that don't contain cholesterol that can cause inflammation. Sugar is probably the worst offender. And if you consume too many sugary foods, some of it can be stored in the body as saturated fat.