Statins do not curb heart disease, say medics
A BOMBSHELL study has sparked fresh confusion over statins by claiming decades of research has not proven they can curb heart disease.
The cholesterol-busting pills are taken by more than six million people in Britain to stave off heart attacks and strokes.
But researchers who looked at data from multiple medical trials from the past 25 years said there was no consistent evidence that lowering levels of so-called “bad” (LDL) cholesterol cuts risk of heart disease.
They warned that the current focus on targeting bad cholesterol may mean doctors are failing to identify people at high risk of heart disease and treating people at low risk.
If confirmed, the findings published in the BMJ Evidence Based Medicine journal, would also have huge implications for food manufacturers marketing low-cholesterol products.
Researchers in the UK, US and France analysed data from 35 trials of three types of LDL cholesterollowering drugs, including statins.
More than three-quarters reported no improvement in death risk for those taking the drugs and almost half found no reduction in risk of cardiovascular disease.
Study co-author Dr Aseem Malhotra, said: “This [study] raises very serious question marks about our approach of lowering cholesterol and management of heart disease.”
Statins work by lowering levels of LDL cholesterol in the bloodstream, preventing the narrowing of arteries and reducing risk of blockages and blood clots.
However, Dr Malhotra said: “The overwhelming majority of people taking statins around the world are not going to receive any benefit at all and they may also be getting potential harms, not just from side effects but from lifestyle behaviours that they indulge in because they have the illusion of protection from taking a statin.”
Stuart Pocock, professor of medical statistics at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said: “In my opinion this article is an extraordinary deception.
“It is well known in many randomised clinical trials and metaanalyses that statins and other lipidlowering drugs are effective in reducing the risk of major cardiovascular events and deaths in a wide range of patient populations.”