In
a comparison of Americans taking statins today and a decade ago, researchers
found that those previously on statins ate fewer calories and less fat than
other adults but, today, statin takers and those not prescribed statins eat similar
amounts of fat and calories. Researchers
are concerned people believe because they are on the medicine, they can eat
excess fat and calories without health consequences.
Using
records collected from the large U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination
Survey researchers compared people who took statins in 1999-2000 to those
taking the drugs in 2009-2010. They
found that over that period statin takers increased their total calorie intake by
9.6% and their intake of calories from fat by 14.4%. While in 1999-2000 persons taking statins
consumed less calories and fat than those who were not taking cholesterol
medication, a decade later the two groups consumed similar amounts of calories
and fats. Body mass index increased in statin users by
1.3, compared with an increase of 0.4 in nonusers. The effect persisted even
after controlling for age, race, education and diagnoses of diabetes and high cholesterol.
Statins
are used by about one-sixth of U.S. adults. The researchers postulated that
because use of the drugs has become so pervasive, needing statins has become
accepted as “normal”. Patients do not
feel an urgency to make lifestyle changes to improve their blood cholesterol
and when the medicines lower their cholesterol to acceptable levels, some fail
to recognize that they still have a blood cholesterol health problem.
Unfortunately, excess calories and the intake of unhealthy fats can worsen
cholesterol levels (even when treated with statins) and lead to weight gain
which itself worsens cholesterol levels and chronic disease risk.
What
to do: Cholesterol treatment is not a license to eat
more calories or to choose items rich in unhealthy saturated fats such as meat,
butter, and full-fat dairy products! Regardless of whether one takes medicine,
consuming a diet low in saturated fat and rich in soluble fiber, getting regular
activity, and aiming for a healthy weight are key to minimizing the risk of
high cholesterol and heart disease.
Adapted from articles available at:
Source:
Sugiyama T, Tsugawa Y, Tseng C,
Kobayashi Y, Shapiro MF. Different time trends of caloric and fat intake
between statin users and nonusers among US adults: Gluttony in the time of
statins? JAMA Intern Med. Published online April 24, 2014. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2014.1927.
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