Cholesterol Drugs Increase Risk of Diabetes; Diabetes Drugs Increase Risk of Heart Attacks

In the age of medical specialists,  we can find ourselves being treated as a collection of conditions.   Our whole health can get lost.   You may find yourselves taking a variety of medications,  perhaps one for cholesterol,  another for high blood pressure and yet another to regulate blood glucose levels. These medications each may be appropriate,  but they also may works against each other.
Two studies regarding cholesterol lowering medications and a diabetes drugs are cases in point.

Lipitor, Crestor and other statin medications taken to lower cholesterol also increase the risk of diabetes,  by about a 9 percent, according to a study that quantified a complication that doctors only recently discovered.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people taking Avandia, a diabetes medicine, needlessly suffer heart attacks and heart failure each month, according to confidential government reports that recommend the drug be removed from the market.

The statin study analyzed 13 studies undetaken after a 2008 trial from London-based AstraZeneca unexpectedly found patients given its drug Crestor had a 25 percent higher risk of diabetes. The new analysis involving more than 90,000 patients, published in the journal Lancet, shows the actual increase in diabetes is 9 percent, the risk is tied to the entire class of medications and the danger increases with age. As a class,  statins are the leading class of drugs sold in the world today,  with annual sales exceeding $35 billion.

Avandia, the diabetes medication,   was once one of the biggest-selling drugs in the world. Driven in part by a multimillion-dollar advertising campaign, sales were $3.2 billion in 2006. But a 2007 study by a Cleveland Clinic cardiologist suggesting that the drug harmed the heart prompted the F.D.A. to issue a warning, and sales plunged. A committee of independent experts found in 2007 that Avandia might increase the risk of heart attack but recommended that it remain on the market, and an F.D.A. oversight board voted 8 to 7 to accept that advice.

Yes, medications may be approrpriate based on overall risk factors,  but they also are powerful chemicals that can negatively effect on our whole health.  A solution optimizing the power of nutrition to significantly improve whole health and prevent heart disease can be used in many cases --- either to avoid the intake of medications or significantly reduce the dosages required to achieve target health result. kardea nutrition - heart healthy and inspired - defining statin alternatives. kardea gourmet - great science, fantastic foods and cardiovascular health.

Juvenile Diabetes & Cholesterol Management

Diabetes is not simply a challenging and chronic disease in its own right, but it also is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular diseases.

As a consequence, those with diabetes, including children and teenagers, are encouraged to take a more active approach to managing cholesterol levels. The American Academy of Pediatrics, for instance, recently recommended wider cholesterol screening for children. Underpinning these recommendations is the understanding that elevated LDL (bad) cholesterol in kids can lead to an onset of cardiovascular disease earlier in adulthood. It recognizes that the plaque in an adult's arteries may have begun developing very early in life.

The AAP also suggested that for a selected group of children, prescribing a statin medication might be appropriate. Drug treatment, according to these recommendations, should be considered for children 8 and older who face multiple risk factors for developing heart disease.

Yet, statins are not typically considered the first line of treatment. Instead, medical nutrition therapy is recommended. Medical nutrition therapy includes the following: decreasing saturated fat (less than 7% total daily calories), avoiding trans fatty acids, decreasing dietary cholesterol to less than 200 mg daily, increasing soluble fiber from oats, beans, psyllium or fruits, and adding plant sterols daily.

In a recent study published in Diabetes Education, the role of medical nutrition therapy was evaluated in a patient with Type II diabetes. The patient achieved a desired LDL cholesterols level through nutrition alone. Medications were not required.

The Study's author concluded that evidence-based nutrition guidelines have been evaluated and reviewed to demonstrate the effectiveness of heart-healthy eating for children with hyperlipidemia and type 1 diabetes.