does taking statins cause alzheimers? - i cant remember

from Tom Naughton at the 'fat head' blog:

"Researchers are only recently discovering that both fat and cholesterol are severely deficient in the Alzheimer’s brain. It turns out that fat and cholesterol are both vital nutrients in the brain. The brain contains only 2% of the body’s mass, but 25% of the total cholesterol. Cholesterol is essential both in transmitting nerve signals and in fighting off infections.

High cholesterol is positively correlated with longevity in people over 85 years old, and has been shown to be associated with better memory function and reduced dementia. The converse is also true: a correlation between falling cholesterol levels and Alzheimer’s.

Put yourself on Lipitor, and we can pretty much guarantee that your cholesterol will fall. That’s the supposed benefit. But …

Yeon-Kyun Shin is an expert on the physical mechanism of cholesterol in the synapse to promote transmission of neural messages. In an interview by a Science Daily reporter, Shin said: “If you deprive cholesterol from the brain, then you directly affect the machinery that triggers the release of neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters affect the data-processing and memory functions. In other words — how smart you are and how well you remember things.”

A second way (besides their direct impact on cholesterol) in which statins likely impact Alzheimer’s is in their indirect negative effect on the supply of fatty acids and antioxidants to the brain. It is a given that statins drastically reduce the level of LDL in the blood serum. This is their claim to fame. It is interesting, however, that they succeed in reducing not just the amount of cholesterol contained in the LDL particles, but rather the actual number of LDL particles altogether. This means that, in addition to depleting cholesterol, they reduce the available supply to the brain of both fatty acids and antixodiants, which are also carried in the LDL particles. As we’ve seen, all three of these substances are essential to proper brain functioning.

The bottom line: your body makes cholesterol for a reason. Beat down your cholesterol with a drug, and you’re messing with your biochemistry at the cellular level. Not a good idea."

cholestoral -lowering drugs bad for health

More from Al Sears MD:
'cholesterol-lowering drugs are bad for your health. Yet according to
another new study, doctors still just arent getting it.
Even worse, many
doctors continue to dismiss the warning signs when their patients
complain of dangerous side effects. Theyre just not
listening.
Researchers at the
University of San Diego recently surveyed 650 patients taking
cholesterol-lowering drugs like Lipitor, Zocor, and Mevacor. The point
of the study was to find out how their doctors responded when they
reported having bad reactions.1
The results were
disturbing, to say the least. Forty-seven percent of
participants suffering from muscle or brain-related problems reported
that their doctors brushed their complaints aside.
Fifty-one
percent of patients with nerve pain said the same thing. Overall,
thirty-two percent of patients with a variety of complaints reported
that their doctors immediately ruled out the possibility that they
could be related to statin drugs.
And, the San Diego
researchers concluded that the pharmaceutical companies who make these
drugs were getting the word out about their dangers
(probably because of fear of legal repercussions). The doctors simply
weren't listening. And in the majority of cases, it was
the patient, not the doctor, who initiated
the discussion about possible side effects.
For my part,
I'm going to continue doing what I've been doing for many
years - warning anyone who will listen to avoid statin drugs. Not only
do they fail to address the real cause of heart disease
(which isn't high cholesterol, by the way) they hurt
instead of helping and can actually be fatal.
The list of statin
drugs side effects is long and frightening. Here are just a
few:

Inability to concentrate
Confusion
Amnesia
Disorientation
Shortness of breath
Fatigue
Nerve pain
Muscle weakness
Depression and other mood
disorders
Impotence
Lowered sex drive
Weakened immune system
Liver damage
Rhabdomyolysis (painful
bursting of muscle cells)
And death

With risks like
these, you have to wonder why so many doctors remain in the dark.
Statins remain blockbuster drugs - 12 million Americans are
currently taking them.
One reason may be
that the mainstream medical community continues to focus on
cholesterol as the chief culprit behind heart disease. There's
no doubt statins lower LDL cholesterol,
The problem is,
cholesterol isn't the problem. It may surprise you to learn that
75 percent of heart attack victims have perfectly normal cholesterol
levels.
The fact is
lowering your LDL cholesterol doesn't protect you from heart
disease. You want to raise your HDL, the good kind. As
long as your HDL is high - around 85 -; there's
no reason to worry about your LDL levels.
You can boost HDL
levels naturally and safely. One clinically proven way is to get more
lean meat in your diet
But if you're
on statin drugs and decide you want to stay on them, make sure your
doctor is responsive to your questions and listens to your reporting
of potential side effects. Take the lead in conversations about
possible side effects and dangers.
And if he or she is
like the doctors in the study and just doesn't listening to you,
find a new doctor.
To Your Good Health,



Al Sears, MD