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It is estimated that 13 million Americans now take a statin-type cholestesrol-lowering medicine like Lipitor, Crestor or Zocor. Such drugs are very good at lowering bad LDL cholesterol and lower the chances of a heart attack or stroke in high-risk patients. But there is a growing recognition that such medications have side effects. Muscle pain and weakness may occur in as many as 10 percent of the patients who use statins, according to a review in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Now another unexpected side effect is getting attention from researchers. Researchers examining the French Pharmacovigillance System Database report that erectile dysfunction is associated with statin medications. Spontaneous complaints of ED were 10 times more common among men taking statins than among those taking other drugs. When the statins were discontinued, over 50 percent reported recovery. [Drug Safety, July 1, 2009]
Side effects to statin drugs, such as muscle weakness and pain, sound harmless when spoken or written. But what is happening to what organs within the body that produce these side effects? Most of the time, the side effects resolve if the statin drug is discontinued. But what of the residual, unseen changes that the body may now be left with? What damage has been done that may set a person up for future organ problems?
I don't like calling them side effects. It's not strong enough. They are SYMPTOMS that something within is no longer functioning as it should; that the drug is altering the healthy performance of some of the systems. When a drug causes the organ to stop producing a product like cholesterol,that isn't the only thing that occurs. Our bodies are not mechanical. They are complex. A drug doesn't simply go in and turn a valve and shut off a supply of cholesterol. It has to alter the organ in a way that can be detrimental otherwise there would be no "side effects".
I remember the loss of two of friends to liver cancer after having been on statins for less than a year and I wonder.
My husband had been on simvastatin, then the Dr switched him to Lipitor. He started acting very strangely, forgetting things, cognitive problems, I told the Dr. so he switched him to Crestor which didn't help much, but then my daughter was researching and read about CoQ10 which I have started him on, and it does make a remarkable difference. Sure wish there was something else to help with cholesterol in lieu of statins.
Cholesterol is not the "evil substance" that it is portrayed. Cholesterol is necessary for normal function of the body. It affects erectile, cognitive, muscle function (the heart is a muscle) and every other bodily function. Low cholesterol has been linked to increased heart failure and an increase in ALS diagnoses, as well as possible increased chances of cancer. Some studies have shown that it is only helpful to high risk middle aged men with CVD. It has been shown to be of little or no value to women and the elderly. Please do more research before you decide to use statins.
The physical process of erection is vascular in nature. Anything that effects the vascular system can lead to erectile dysfunction. Diabetes, smoking, high blood pressure and related medications can all be a cause of erectile dysfunction.
I recommend you discuss this issue with your physician. There are many forms of treatment now a days.
Among the many side effects I experienced while on a statin was a decreased and steadily fading sex drive. (I agree with the excellent comment by dp above, that "side effects" is not accurate. They really are symptoms reflecting a serious wide ranging deterioration in your body. The body is very complex in it's function, and the presumptuousness of much of modern medicine overlooks this. Statins are affecting peoples health in wide ranging and little studied and understood ways.) The week I stopped the statins I was simply amazed at the return of my sexual function. I find it maybe more than just ironic that Pfizer's two top money makers of all time are Lipitor, a statin causing sexual disfunction, and Viagra, a drug to restore it. Things are seriously wrong with this world!
Re: Decreasing sexual drive when taking Lipitor. I have been taking Lipitor for 9+ years and have discovered that by taking DHEA, with no side effects that I am aware of, twice daily and my sexual drive is robust and satisfying for myself and my partner. I am 65 years old, diabetic, had a heart bypass, both cholesterol and diabetes are under control and have lost approx. 40 lbs. I have passed this info along to others and their results have been similar.
My husband has taken statins off and on for the last few years. Recently he was back on them and we started noticing erectile problems (again). I also noticed that he seemed to have restless legs at night. I had never noticed that his legs were moving at night before. He stopped the statins and the erectile problems resolved and I have not noticed the moving legs at night again. I just read an article that correlated restless legs and erectile problems. Maybe statins should be thrown into this discussion.
Since I started simvastatins I have had ED & and loss of interest in sex. Drugs are all the same, side affects, some of which cause more problems than they solve. It's all big business. Just watch the commercials on TV. "Ask your doctor, talk to your doctor," constantly.
Unfortunately talking to one's doctor (if you have any real confidence in them to begin with) is not very fruitful. After all they only know what they are told. Every individual must conduct their own research.