iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

The US FDA does not regulate herbal medications and there is often limited information about how they work and how they interact which prescription medications. With that said, there is some research that suggests that peppermint may interfere with the body's enzyme system that metabolizes many medications. Many cholesterol medications, such as Zocor, are affected by this enzyme system. As a result, Zocor levels may increase in the body, causing unwanted side effects or even overdoses when Zocor is taken with peppermint. You should not start any new herbal supplement or over-the-counter preparation without talking to your physician first.

Posted: 2009-07-20 09:49:41

Answer/Reply:

I've heard of the Red Yeast Rice, but unfamiliar with it. Is it an actual yeast? I have Candida problems and can't eat yeast.....or is it just a name for an herb?

59 year old Female

Posted: 2009-07-22 23:06:04

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

Red Yeast Rice contains the yeast, Monascus purpureus. The yeast is grown on rice. It has been shown to have some cholesterol-lowering effects. Like most herbal supplements, it has not been evaluated by the FDA for safety and effectiveness.

Posted: 2009-07-27 10:25:38

Answer/Reply:

How much did your cholestrol go down in the two months you were taking the red yeast? Thanks

52 year old Female

Posted: 2009-08-01 20:30:34

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

Pravastatin can be taken at any time during the day or evening. It is best to take it at the same time every day - this should help you remember to take it to ensure that you receive your daily dose. Pravastatin does have interactions with other medications. Keeping your iGuard profile up-to-date with all of your medications, including over-the-counter medications, vitamins, and supplements will help alert you to these potential interactions. You can also ask your pharmacist to review your medication list for possible drugs interactions.

Posted: 2009-05-20 22:49:16

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

Pravastatin like many "statin" drugs can cause muscle aches and muscle fatigue. It is a side effect that should be reported immediately to your physician as it may lead to more severe problems and needs to be monitored.

Posted: 2009-05-20 22:58:32

Answer/Reply:

I have been taking pravastatin 10mg close to a week now and my legs are aching so bad ,thats why im on line trying to see if anybody else is having that sam problem. I am a 50yr.old female.

51 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-11 02:48:30

Answer/Reply:

I have been on Niaspan for just over a month and I do get flushing with it but very infrequently, only about four or five times so far and it has only lasts about 20 minutes. I have talked to a pharmacist because I get terrible itching along with the flushing, the itching being much more bothersome to me than the flushing, and he said I was very lucky because most people who have the flushing have it all the time. I am only taking 500mg so I am on a low dose. I hope this helps.

52 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-16 16:16:09

Answer/Reply:

I also got leg pains when I took a statin drug for cholesterol. So I stopped. I now take red yeast rice, I get it at a Nature store, and it is taking my cholesterol down. My dr. knows I am taking it and all she said the last time was to increase it. You might try it, it works. My son also takes it and it is controlling his cholesterol. Hope this helps. Anything that keep a person from taking a prescription with all the side effects, I think it is worth checking out.

71 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-20 16:29:22

Answer/Reply:

I was being awakened in the middle of the night with what I feel was severe flushing and itching all over that I would take a straight COLD water shower to help alleviate the burning and itching.My Doctor said for me to make sure I take it just before bedtimer WITH an aspirin and three tablespoons of applesauce. He said that fruit pectin helps to practically eradicate the flushing and subsequent itching. So far, it has worked for the most part since I am now taking two (2) 500mg Niaspan (prescritpion no flush type) to help increase the good cholesterol. Remember, an aspirin and three tablespoons of applesauce (the cheap kind is as good as the brand names). I am a 61 year old male.

63 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-20 21:52:06

Answer/Reply:

I am on Niaspan also and suffer from all out sweats when taking this to the point of being drenched. I reported this to the manufacturer and of course they said that they have had some reports of minor sweats and flushing when taking this medication. I am glad that there are others out there that suffer from the same side effects. It was driving me crazy to find out what caused the sweating. Also this itching is another side effect of this medication. But it is better than the side effects of a statin. Although statins have many benefits I cramped up so much that I could not get up in the morning. I would get constant charlie horses in the AM. Once I had stopped the statin the cramping and pain STOPPED immediately.

62 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-29 03:09:13

Answer/Reply:

I have been on all medication including Crestor. I walk 3 or 4 miles a day to work and when I start taking Crestor My legs began to hurt to the point I could not walk a block. I am now taking Vytroin and Niacin. I started with 500 and my doctor pushed it to 1500. I could not tolarate it. I am now back to 500. Hopes this helps

64 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-01 10:22:58

Answer/Reply:

I have been on lipitor for more years than I can count and went threw pains and cramps in my legs and arms I take Co Q 10 but not the recommended dose I take sometimes 4-600 a day when I have a rough time It can't hear as it is something natural produced in the body which is destroyed by medications

Have you (I am sure you have if you took supplements) red yeast rice or red rice yeast?? I never can remember the name My husband had high cholesterol too it and he is doing good and not even taking it and he eats everything not good for a human (male thing)

Niacin does give flushes I took it in the past!! but I hear there is a lot of niacin in some of the multiple B vitamins

Check vitacost.com they have a large selection good prices and they have a really good product information and symptom information I have gotten most of my answers from these areas

Hope something works for you

Fran
samisplace@comcast.net

67 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-02 19:56:43

Answer/Reply:

Check with your doctor, the Crestor may be the cause.
Yes, you do get hot flashes or flushing is what it is called with Niacin. Taking an asprin thirty minutes before you take the Niacin and eat an apple afterwards helps. My husband switched from the prescription form to the over the counter form of Niacin and found less flushing with it. Seem to be the only difference out side of the cost. Niacia is expense with a presecription.
Suzee

66 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-16 16:38:14

Answer/Reply:

My cholesterol went up and my Doctor started me on statins. I couldn't take them because of the pain they caused. I saw what is called Nutrim on the website Oathealth and ordered 2 cans. It's like oatbrand and you can add it to cereal(cold) or hot. You can put it in cooked foods, even use it in meatloaf. There is no aftertaste. and my cholesterol is now 178 and there is no pain or hot flashes. It might help you too

71 year old female from Ky.

72 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-23 01:21:31

Answer/Reply:

Kentucky Womean what was your cholesterol originally??

56 year old Female

Posted: 2009-07-02 14:51:26

Answer/Reply:

I have the same issues on Cholesterol treatments.I cannot take any of them. They all cause leg cramps and I have fibromyalgia and dont need any more pain in my legs than i already have. They say diet and exercise is the only other method of treating high cholesterol. So far mine is still high. I wish I could help more. But I think your pain is from the crestor. Although it was the only one I could take, it did cause the pain, just not as sever as the others. Good luck. anita 57 yr old female, with fibromyalgia, arthritis, carpel tunnel and depression.

57 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-16 16:57:33

Answer/Reply:

Ask your doctor about trying pravochol. It's one of the older medicines for cholesterol but my doctor said it may be less likely to cause the side effects. If it lowers your cholesterol levels, then who cares how old it is?

57 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-29 23:40:05

Answer/Reply:

I take 10/20 vytorin at night before bed time and have no aches or pains. I have high cholesterol,diabetic and on high blood pressure pills. But I do not have joint pain or aches. I have been on vytorin for three years.

54 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-31 11:08:58

Answer/Reply:

Maybe you should try Welchol to help control your cholesterol. I took it for quite a while and had no side effects whsoever. Don

66 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-31 19:14:29

Answer/Reply:

i had the same things going on with the cramps and all a friend told me to take some things and i said your nuts ,but the cramps got so bad my wife had to punch me in the midlle of the cramps as hard as she could so i thought i'll try it go to the ladies dept. and get a box of legatrin pm also eat banana's as long as i stay on the stuff no cramps good luck hope you feel better soon

61yr. old male

61 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-31 22:46:16

Answer/Reply:

I am on Crestor now for the second time after trying others including Lovaza Omega 3-acid which I hated. It caused so much flushing and sweating I was embarassed to go to work some days. The Crestor works well for me and my doctor told me for the leg cramps drink tonic water (quinine). I do and the cramps go away within a few minutes.

62 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-03 20:21:07

Answer/Reply:

Im not sure if you have tried it yet yes im young but bad health runs bad in both sides of my family im destined for problems I eat healthy but im always to busy to work out but i had really bad high cholesterol and good is still low the doctor recomended exersize i took virgin coconut oil in pill form I got it from a local homeopathic store i didnt change my diet and i didnt change my life (ie. exersize) and my levels are now normal and no where close to high you should talk to a doctor or homeopathic specialist (I choose the women that worked at the store they seem to know this stuff) to find out what dose to take i took 1000mg at 3 pills in the AM and 3 pills in the PM and it took about 6 weeks before i was out of the red and i didnt have any pains that wernt there before I hope this helps

29 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-05 01:50:43

Answer/Reply:

I am on statins for my high cholesterol.I found that taking it at night instead of in the morning helps to keep down some of the side effects.

53 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-05 10:37:19

Answer/Reply:

I take Cinnamon Extract 600 mg with Chromium & Vitamin B-5 (from Hi Health Store).for my high chloestrol. It seems to be working. My Physican Assistant recommended this since I did not want to make a prescribed medication

61 year female relatively healthy

90 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-05 20:27:30

Answer/Reply:

I also have the same problem with pain in front of my legs. I know it is from the Statin Pills. I have had ultra sounds done on both my legs, no blood clots Now I do know it is from my Cholesterol pills. I have tried different ones, checked on everything I could on the Statin Pills, I come up with the same thing. I do need them and yes, they dropped my readings great. I am trying to accept the pain that comes along with the Pills. I had been off them for over 3 months and pain went away, but my reading went up also, so there you go. Good luck !!!!!!!

65 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-16 17:23:34

Answer/Reply:

I also have FM and CFS for over 20 years. I cannot take statins; however take 3 1200 mg fish oil capsules daily along with 2 Red Yeast Rice tablets and 2 flush free Niacin capsules (500mg) each. For leg pain I take 4 Malic Acid tablets and B complex capsule at bedtime. All this seems to help!!

73 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-20 20:28:16

Answer/Reply:

I don't know if you know this, but that pain from the statins can mean a life-threatening condition, permanent muscle damage, permanent organ damage, etc. Don't ignore that pain! Talk to your doctor!!!

I've tried every statin on the market, every single one of them causes absolutely unbearable pain. My doctor has been trying to get me to try them again, but my experiences have been so bad, you couldn't pay me to try again! The last one, Crestor, gave me muscle spasms in my back so bad that I couldn't stand up straight for two days.

I now take a cocktail of other meds, Niaspan, Fish Oil, Garlic, Calcium, to help reduce my cholesterol, and it has dropped, but not enough. I've gone from 305 to 255 in the past year.

43 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-28 19:40:06

Answer/Reply:

I thought I was going nuts in regards to a pain that I have had in my thigh area , but only in the front. After reading your comment I feel much better, thank you.

48 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-29 14:25:07

Answer/Reply:

I too have cholesteral problems, the doctor put me on different statin drugs and none of them worked,because I was in so much pain...I also have fibromyalgia and it always made it worse...So he put me on zetia and that worked better than anything else because it does not work in the liver...I also eat cheerios with a banana in the mornings and that has helped me alot...I went from 228 to 191 on my cholestoral lever...I know what pain is between osteo arthritis and fibro, and lupus, plus type 2 diabetes...so I hope this helps good luck..

63 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-03 16:58:31

Answer/Reply:

I find that eating a bowl of oatmeal is a great way to lower your cholesterol. I started to that because my cholesterol medicine was causing severe charley horses in some odd places. You might also ask your doctor to change your medicine. Hope this helps

51 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-16 19:53:24

Answer/Reply:

GARLIC IS GOOD TO LOWER CHOLESTROL. I TAKE KYOLIC GARLIC. WORKS GREAT. NO IT DOES NOT GIVE YOU GARLIC BREATH.

63 year old Male

Posted: 2009-06-02 23:38:53

Answer/Reply:

Niacin is really bad for hot flashes! Especially if used for raising good cholesterol. The reason is because when used for that purpose it is used in higher doses. I was on 2000 mg a day and even breaking it up into 500 mg 4 times a day was still really awful. I ended giving up on it and my doctor raised hell with me but I told him the side effects were just too much for me to handle. The hot flashes were just one of many for me though. Itchy skin (like poison ivy) goes along with the hotness as well.
My doctor has recommended a good aerobic routine or cardio routine to help raise the good cholesterol. Anything to raise the heart rate several times a week.

37 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-16 22:36:11

Answer/Reply:

I was on niacin for about 2 weeks and stopped it on my own after having about 5 hot flashes. I never knew what a hotflash was until I took this pill. The hot flashes were quite intense, but the itching that comes along with it was so bad that where ever I scratched myself, it bled. I thought I was going to have a breakdown it was unbearable.
My doc said to take an aspirin and some applesauce 1/2 before but it did NOT help. Changed to pravastatin, no problems anymore. 55 year old female

56 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-30 17:16:51

Answer/Reply:

The leg pains are from the colesterol Med, Yes you do get hot flashes unless taken in small doses but I think their is some now they sell that does not do that.

48 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-16 23:29:25

Answer/Reply:

I have been on Lipitor since I was 36, I am now 60. I've never had a problem with Lipitor and my Cholesterol level is 128 as of last week.

60 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-05 13:35:45

Answer/Reply:

I am a 65 yr. old female and have high cholesterol. I too tried most of the statin drugs including Crestor and finally gave up because of joint pains. Crestor was the last one I tried. I stayed on it until I could hardly walk down the stairs. Now I take 2 to 3 grams of fish oil and 100 mg. of coq10 daily. My total Cholesterol is 236 but my ratio is good because of the fish oil, I think. I would love to know if there was anything I could also.

----`

66 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-16 23:40:27

Answer/Reply:

Red Yeast Rice and Policosanol have been effective in lowering bad cholesterol for some members of my family. These do not require a prescription. My doctor okayed this for me.

69 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-26 17:54:20

Answer/Reply:

Try Welchol 625mg tabs. It works in your stomache with the food. No side affects and lowers your cholesterol. Works fine for me.

51yr old female

52 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-29 20:23:36

Answer/Reply:

try using olive oil, it substantially dropped my colesterol levels combined with eating tuna fish packed in water. try tropical tuna salad- tuna, mandarin orange pieces, raw onion only

59 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-30 09:43:06

Answer/Reply:

Add garlic to the fish oil and CO Q 10. Also try adding Red Rice Yeast. It's the natural substance that the make statins from and I have no side effects from it. It lowered my triglicerides, raised my good cholesterol and lowered the bad.

55 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-06 01:16:31

Answer/Reply:

I'm a 66 year old female that has been on Lipitor for about 5 years. Have no side effects. Ask your doctor about this med.

66 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-17 00:56:55

Answer/Reply:

I'm a 56 year old femail that has been on Lipitor for about 12 years. I also have had no side effects. I only have high cholesterol - not high blood pressure (it is common to have both). Could it be the combination of meds?

56 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-20 14:24:22

Answer/Reply:

I am a 64 year old female and have been taking Lipitor for probably 10+ years. I have not had any side effects.

65 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-20 15:03:51

Answer/Reply:

I an taking Niacin 250 mg. The brand I take is over the counter. It is Nature's Bounty. It Does Not cause flushing or itching. I have tried other and they did cause flushing and itching. I don't have any side effects from this brand. I am also taking Lipitor and Tricor.

54 Female.

55 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-24 16:00:21

Answer/Reply:

There are different forms of niacin. Inistol( I think it called) is aform I've used at 2000mG a day and got zero fluhing. And it kept my levels below 200. My statins also caused pain so my doc lower doses.

59 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-24 16:29:15

Answer/Reply:

I'm 49, have been on Lipitor for 3 years. I had hot flashes and sweats, but I was menopausal.Now at 49, thats pretty much over. Also had leg pain in right calf, probably as far back as 15 years. My Dr couldnt rule out PADS. But without insurance, I cant afford to have anything done.Dr never mentioned diet and exercise,just gave me Lipitor after my heart attack at 45 ( 9-11-05 ) I'm 5'3", 130 lbs and exercising at least a little bit daily.But I have had no side effects at all. I'm also on atenolol.Had no problems with that either.

50 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-26 07:12:44

Answer/Reply:

I am a 76 female that was put on all the statins, one after the other, all resulting in leg pain. Dr. put me on Zestia. It works a little different then the statins. Reduced my levels to an acceptable range. I have nueorpathy in feet and legs and spinal problems, certainly don't need the pain is legs. Also found a bowl of oatmeal really helps too.
I also would like to add as crazy as it sounds a bar of soap under sheet really helps restless legs and cramping.

77 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-27 16:53:38

Answer/Reply:

I have been on statins for 15 yrs. Little did I know what was going to happen to me...Please check out medications.com and see for yourself....Muscle pain, headaches, memory loss..etc more than I can list on this site...Please check it out! 61 year old female..

62 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-28 14:25:50

Answer/Reply:

Lipitor was the very first statin I took and It made me feel like I had the flu. I have since switched to 4 others...finally the Zocor seems to work. Maybe the lipitor worked well or you, but not me. I take the statins for about 3 weeks then I lay off them for a week or two, I don't feel quite so achey. I tried the Niacin once...and my face got really flushed. didn't like that feeling either.

66 year 'young' female

68 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-30 23:31:27

Answer/Reply:

I try to eat a bowl a bowl of oatmeal everyday as well as some of the high fiber breads and add milled ground flaxseed to my food. Now that really dropped my colestoral ratings. I also take Q10 and mega fish oils as well as niacin. I cut my over the counter 250 mg in half and there is no reading and stinging anymore. As for statins I've bee on 40 mg of Zocore foever and I 've had no leg pains, I take it at night. Good luck all and God speed.
57 yr female

58 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-31 09:03:01

Answer/Reply:

I have been on Zocor for a couple of years,and don't seem to have any side effects.Now that it is generic,the cost has come way down,which really helps.
54 year old female

54 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-03 14:26:40

Answer/Reply:

I am a 47yr. old female, My cholestrol problem is my bad cholestrol is too high and my good cholestrol is too low. My Doctor placed me on Zocor, I do not have any more pain in my legs than I had before, I was in a car accident 2/15/06 and I'm in a wheelchair. I have pain in my knees but that's due to the accident, my numbers are getting better and I have been able to drop from 20mg to 10mg. The itching I do have but I just scratch it's the only thing I can do. The best thing to do is talk with your Doctor about your complaints. I'd rather itch than have my cholestrol out of order.

48 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-03 20:01:55

Answer/Reply:

I too have high cholesterol and my triglycerides were off the chart. My Dr prescribed Lipitor which worked, but I heard about nonflushing Niacin from my bro in-law who had a heart attack. His cardiologist started him on 500 mg. then increased to 1000 and then to 1500mgs of Niacin to control his cholesteral. So I started taking 1000 mgs. and stopped my Lipitor. My Dr. increase my daily dosage to 1500 mgs. also. They truly are non flushing. I got the regular by mistake and had a terrible bout of hot firey flushing. No problem at all with the non-flushing and my tri's are down considerably and my Dr. was impressed with the results as the Niacin was more effective than the Lipitor/statins.

52 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-04 21:07:03

Answer/Reply:

I was on Lipitor and had trouble with my legs.I fell three times in one day at work and the last time I couldn't walk.Went to the hospital they said it wasn't the Lipitor but took my self off of it and stop having trouble with my legs.The next time I went to the Doctor he put me on Zetia and have not had and problems and my Cholesterol has been good.And some of my friends are using Zetia now and they are glad then changed.

64 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-05 11:17:59

Answer/Reply:

Male/65 yrs.
Have you been tested for blood ciculation in your legs? Has your doctor done lab work to check for diabetes. I was diagnosed as being border line diabetic in 2000. However my former doctor failed to have me tested during the following two years. I finally reached the decision that,it was time to change doctors. My present doctor had new sugar test run in 2002. I was diagnosed as being type 2 diabetic. I was later found to have osteoarthritis which creates pain in the legs. My leg pain continued to intenisify. Doctor recheched my legs and found that,I now have neuropthy,a disease caused by diabetes,which also causes pain.The reason, I have listed all of the above symptoms is to say, one or more of the above might be affecting your legs or maybe none of the above ailements. My suggest to you is as follows. You need to sit down with you family doctor and have a critical discussion with them. I would request a sugar test,exrays of the bones in the legs ant last but not least,a circulation exam done on your legs. Its very critical that,you understand that this is your health that is at stake. If, you have something wrong with you and,Its not detected,It can lead to another ailement. Eventually,you have a multitude of problems and eventually things get out of control. As,It has in my situation. Now my doctor and I sit and there is a long question and answer session during each doctor visit. I sicerely hope you find an honest answer from a medical doctor and that,the problem is corrected.

66 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-17 10:53:52

Answer/Reply:

I too had the same problem with Crestor and my Dr changed me to Welchol and I have not had any problems in fact my Cholesterol has finally returned to normal. I have been taking Welchol since the fall of 08. Tried Zetia and it did the same thing. I thought I was going to have to use a walker. I have just turned 55 and I am not ready to sit still!

56 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-17 11:09:24

Answer/Reply:

I'm a 58 year old male who took niacin , I got hot flashes and it didn't work as well as Lipitor

59 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-17 11:28:49

Answer/Reply:

Not sure what your weight/diet/exercise routine is, I'm sure you know that all plays into cholesterol levels. Check with your MD, let him know of the side effects, ask about other possibilities. Red yeast rice, flush free niacin are both supposed to aid in dropping that cholesterol level, without the side effects. also read what follows! Have you ever had a calcium scoring test by CAT scan? There is an awesome website that was recommended to me by my chiropractor, who has a BS in nutrition, and keeps himself up to date with most everything, supplement and nutritional support. He recommended a website...there are thousands, who can chose the right one? The advice he gave me was to use Mercola.com as a guide for up to date info. on supplement support, along with many other interesting articles. You can subscribe for free to the newsletters, search archives and such. Product is also sold, although I have not purchased from this site, I do think that it gives the most valuable, and medically backed advice. No one should EVER just purchase and use supplements without the advice from a medical professional. Research on the purity of the CoQ10, interactions with other meds., health issues, and age MUST be done,and dose varies on an individual basis. Check out the site, check with your own MD. and ask for referral to licensed professional to help answer those questions. You may also be able to ask via e-mail at Mercola itself for a professional near you! Good Luck!

45 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-17 12:21:13

Answer/Reply:

I have been on lipitor and zetia for about 6 years since my heart attack...I'm 58 now...I didn't start out with leg pain, but it did become a problem as the years went by..I had surgery in 2006 because the doctors thought it was a blockage..put 2 stents in...and then this year they were going to do it again because the pain has really gotten worse and I can hardly walk in the store or at work...they said there was no blockage when they operated, and I have been reading in our local paper , Dr.Gott and alot of people say it happened to them after starting these pills.I decided after the last surgery that I was going to stop them, I quit zetia altogether and am using the lipitor till they are gone, and the pain is gone...almost completely...I also use fish oil pills ..3 per day..my cholesteral has always been good...115 total, bad is 50, and my good is 39 which they want higher...so I can't afford both pills so I may just stay on lipitor...good luck. hope this helps...

58 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-17 13:28:49

Answer/Reply:

I have taken cholesterol medication for a while. i take simvastatin (Zocor), fenofibrate and lovaza (fish oil). i also take CoQ10, but not for cholesterol. it is part of a heart regimen i started about 25 years ago when a pharmacist told me about it. i take a great multivitamin, vitamin B complex, Co-Q10, at least 150 mg, Lovaza (or Max EPA) anywhere from 4 to 6 a day - 2 or 3 twice daily), when they tried giving me niacin which i had no problem with in vitamins, but by itself it caused major problems for me and i had to discontinue. my triglycerides went through the roof. i also experienced the niacin burn which was very uncomfortable. it was not hot flashes. i don't know what to say about pain related to BP medication. I take percocet for neuropathy though

54 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-17 15:45:14

Answer/Reply:

HI, gosh i dont know about the pains you are having i've never tried crestor. I'm on simvastatin and have no problems whatsoever. I did have a question for you though. I recently started taking omega3 also. do you think that contributed to the big drop in your cholesterol? Also did it help with the good cholesterol? Mine is always too low. between 31-36.
As for the niacin, i used to take that a year or so ago. I found MANY side effects from it, they told me to take a baby aspirin with it, to help with "flushing". If that was what worked, then i had no hot flashes.
any ideas on getting the high triglycerides down? Mine are 201, not big high, but enough .

57 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-17 16:21:32

Answer/Reply:

I was on crestor and I use to get cramp on my leg so bad I would lay down and almost cry. I finnaly went to my dr and went on PRAVASTATIN 20 mg it has held my good and bad cholestrol in the good range maybe it will help you. lary

76 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-17 16:39:55

Answer/Reply:

I have been taking Vytorin and Niacin to control high chlosterol for approximately 2 years. I started having strong pains in my leg to the point that it is hard to stand on. I thought it might be diarhea. I do have periodic hot flashes, but at 51 years old, I thought this was normal. I have not discussed my pain with my doctor yet, but I am scheduled for emergency surgery to remove my gall bladder, whick I don't know if this is relative in anyway.

52 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-17 17:31:36

Answer/Reply:

I was diagnosed with myopathy (causes painful leg cramps to the point where it is difficult to move/stand). After a full blood workup, my specialists (hospitalist, neurologist, hematologist, endocrinologist, internist, rheumatologist) all concluded that it was caused by adverse drug reaction to my immunosuppresant drug and a stantin drug (specifically for me, Vytorin) causing my CPK levels to be extremely elevated (reason for my myopathy). After hospitalization, resulting in stopping the Vytorin immediately, my symptoms disappeared within a couple of days and my CPK level eventually reached therapeutic levels. Suggestion: Have your physician order a CPK isoenzymes test, which measures the different forms of creatine phosphokinase in the blood.

40 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-02 09:38:05

Answer/Reply:

FIRST OF ALL YOUR DOING THE RIGHT THINGS FOR THE MOST PART IN MY OPINION IN TAKING THE OMEGA3-OIL AND THE CO-Q10 BOTH. HOWEVER IF THIS STILL ISN'T CONTROLLING YOU CHOLESTEROL ISSUES YOU CAN TRY RED RICE YEAST AS IT WORKS LIKE A STATIN DRUG ITSELF AND IS MORE NATURAL. AS FOR THE NIACIN BE CAREFUL WITH THAT ONE AS YES IT CAN CAUSE HOT FALSHES BUT CAN BE OVERDONE AS WELL AND CAUSE SOME LIVER PROBLEMS WHICH BRINGS ME TO MY BIGGEST CONCERN OVER YOUR MUSCLES HURTING AS SOUNDS LIKE YOU WOULD BE IN THE GOOD TO ASK THE DR FOR A COMPLETE LIVER PANEL WORKUP AS THIS IS SYMPTOMS OF FATTY LIVER OR INCREASED LIVER ENZYMES OR EVEN LIVER MALFUNTION HONESTLY IS SORE MUSCLES AND CRAMPING. I HAVE A SLIGHT PROBLEM WITH CHOLESTEROL BUT TAKE TO MANY MEDS NOW DUE TO CHRONIC ILLNESS I HAVE AND I DON'T CARE FOR THE CHOLESTEROL MEDS AT ALL HONESTLY AS I FEEL THE DANGER TO THE LIVER OUTWIEGHS THE BENEFITS THEY GIVE IN MOST CASES. RESEARCH SOME HOMEOPATHIC IDEAS TO INCREASE HDL LEVELS AS THIS IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN ANYTING AS IF YOU CAN DO THIS THE HIGHER LEVELS OF LDL WANT HURT YOU AS BAD AS WELL. THIS IS NOT INTENDED TO REPLACE YOU DR'S ADVICE AT ALL BUT JUST INFORMATION BASED ON MY EXPERIENCE AND HOPE IT HELPS SOME. GOD BLESS, JEFF

39 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-17 18:39:30

Answer/Reply:

Try using "Red Yeast Rice" (get at a health foods store) and Almonds. I took Lipitor for several years and had allergic reactrions. My insurance would not pay for any thing else.
But the almonds and red yeast rice are helping to do the trick. My cholesterol has gone from 398 to 150 so far.

60 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-17 20:02:01

Answer/Reply:

I had the same problems with Lipitor. My legs and muscles hurt. Then I was change to parvastain. This one I do not feel any problems. Now on the niacin I take that for my trigil. And my Dr. says that if it does not give you a flush it is not working to keep your trigil down. But I have a hard trying to buy the niacin with the flushing effect. So I get the time release and that seems to give hot flashes, but not to often. I hope this helped you.

54 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-17 20:26:26

Answer/Reply:

Ok first off, your doctor is an idiot to tell you that if your not getting the flushing effect that its not working... thats a load of bullsh*t!!!!! The time release niacin will give the flushing effect even with taking the low dose asprin. I took both at one point and i was taking 325mg asprin to offset the flushing to no avail. My doctor finally took me off them and put me on tripilix which is also used to lower trigs. I've been on tripilix for 4 months now with no side effects!

35 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-27 18:36:53

Answer/Reply:

I would most definately let your doctor know what's going on. Pain anywhere is not a good thing. My mother was on Lipitor and started having alot of muscle spasms and then it started in her chest area, so the doctor took her off that medication and put her on Lovastatin. There are other alternatives, but the first thing you should do is notify your doctor.

48 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-17 23:16:25

Answer/Reply:

If you take a baby aspirin about one hour before you take the Niacin it will help to not have the hot flashes.

74 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-17 23:24:08

Answer/Reply:

I used Crestor sometime ago and had some pains in my legs and hip joints. I am now using VYTORIN. I have no pains or very little, cholesterol is real lower, the doctor is very happy with the results. Ask your doctor about VYTORIN, I realy like it.

55 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-18 05:09:16

Answer/Reply:

Both my husband and a male friend of you took Crestor too. They both felt like they had a mild case of the flu while they were taking it. My husband also had leg pains and headaches. When they quit taking it, the symptoms went away.

58 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 09:13:05

Answer/Reply:

I have taken Niacin for years and found if I take the Flush Free Niacin it stops the hot flashes you get when you take the regular Niacin. As for pain in the front of your legs I've never had that and I've been on Crestor 10MG for several years and has helped bring down my Cholesterol several hundred points. Maybe you need to check with your Dr. and see if your taking too much Crestor.I had taken several other cholesterol drugs and none worked for me as well as Crestor but some people can't take it or have to take a smaller dose. I also take Omega 3 every day but not the coq10, and I take Vit E400. Good luck!

68 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 11:54:25

Answer/Reply:

FYI, I cannot take COQ10 as it makes me stiff and my heart beat eratic. Just thought this may help you.

65 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 15:42:17

Answer/Reply:

I have the same problem, except location of pain. I've tried all the statins and have the same result. You really have my sympathy. I have "familial" hyper cholesterol to which diet makes only a small effect. I can get my cholesterol down to around 200, but I must take a combination of Crestor, Welchol, and Tricor in addition to the fish oil. However, my quality of life is adversely affected. If I go off the meds, within 3 days or less I'm a new person who feels 40 years younger with no pains, just rapidly rising cholesterol. I hope you and I find an acceptable alternative soon.
70 year old male

71 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-18 16:16:37

Answer/Reply:

My Dr. tried me on niacin and I took one pill and started to itch all over. Called and he said to stop taking them. I was allergic to it. Took Lipitor and itched from that also. Don't know what they will try next.

83 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 16:33:26

Answer/Reply:

Niacin will cause hot flashes in anyone. If you take too large a dose you can actually get a very all over warm sensation from it. I know some women who take too much just before sex so that it stimulates the event.
I take Zocor for my high cholesterol. I will not have my numbers checked again for 6 months. The leg cramping is not suppose to be cramping from these drugs. I am finding as time goes on that I am week in the legs. I read online that if you get cramps or weakness in your legs let your doctor know. As this can sometimes in exteme cases lead to MS. You need to consult your doctor as soon as you can. I have been very careful to pay attention to any and all pains and aches in my legs knowing this information. You can google your drugs name and see if your Crestor will cause this weakness. This is how I educated myself on the MS possibilites.
Hope this helps.

54 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 16:45:28

Answer/Reply:

I have already been through the hot flashes from the change, I'm 57. I am on SLONIACIN 500mg it causes some mild flashes but nothing bad. I have Multiple Sclerosis so the hot flashes would really bother me if they were bad.

Just like I tell someone with MS everyone is different. What works for me may or may not work for you, it is a try and pray that it does. The Lord Be With You!

58 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 17:24:04

Answer/Reply:

i take niasan 1ooo mg at bedtime and was experiencing hot flashes 3-4 nights a week. my doctor's nurse said to try taking low dose aspirin an hour before the niaspan and the hot floshes are gone for now. the p ain in the legs can be early onset arthritis but i hope not. hope this helps and good luck and health.

68 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-18 18:35:33

Answer/Reply:

I tried taking 1000mg of niaspan for many months because it works really well on controlling the cholesterol (especially the triglycerides). It wasn't really hot flashes that I had . . . I called them POWER SURGES! It started at my the top of my head and slowly-y-y-y crept down my entire body to the tip of my toes and then traveled back up to the top of my head. Needless to say, I quit taking them. One of my doctor's nurses told me many months later, to start taking them again as it really works well but to cut the 1000's in half and take that dosage for a few weeks and then go on the 1000's. IT WORKED! My triglycerides are now in range along with the rest of my numbers. Had I known that in the 1st place, I wouldn't have given up so easily. The results are well worth it! Good luck to you and hope it works for you as well as it does for me.

60 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 21:13:06

Answer/Reply:

On Zocor for 6 years, my numbers are perfect...and I can barely walk. That makes weight control more challenging, so I decided to "see" if I was really having side effects. I'm off Zocor for about a month and gradually getting function back along with less pain. I'm virtually certain the cholesterol lab results will be unacceptable, so I have an interesting choice ahead of me.

65 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-18 21:16:51

Answer/Reply:

I have been on Lipitor, zocor, Crestor. Finally went to Red Rice Yeast and Nician Non Flushing. I take the Nician at night with 1/2 aspirn, per dr's directions. I am a male 74, never have had any flushing. Have not been back to Dr since starting RRY and Nician. I also had cramps in my calfs. One morning I had a crap in both calfs at the same time. I quit the Crestor, have not had any cramps since. Not sure what my numbers are at present as I have not been back to Dr in 7 months.

75 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-18 22:17:25

Answer/Reply:

Try this test. Stop taking the Crestor for two days. If the pain gets better, go back on the Crestor and see if the pain comes back. If it does, stop taking the Crestor and tell your doctor. Continuing to take the Crestor after you have determined it is causing the pain could lead to more severe problems. If you have not done so, please research Crestor and other statin drugs. You might want to check out spacedoc.net.

54 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 22:36:43

Answer/Reply:

Try this test. Stop taking the Crestor for two days. Then start back on it. If the pain goes away when you don't take it but comes back when you do, then it's the Crestor. Stop taking it and tell your doctor. Continuing to take it can cause more serious problems. Check out the information at spacedoc.net on statin drugs. There are other options. I can't take the statins because of the pain. I am on Welchol. It doesn't work as fast but it won't cause the problems the statins cause.

I discussed the statins with my doctor. He stated that the statins actually only work for about 1 out 10 people. He said the side effects can be serious for many people and that the general public should not be taking it. Statins also don't prevent heart attacks.

54 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 22:48:32

Answer/Reply:

i am on lipitor ,it is working great for me.really not having any side affects.when you take niacin with out food you will get a niacin flush.if you take it with food it shouldn't cause a flush.my husband use to get a flush ,a diabetic teacher told us about taking it with food. a 64 y/o female

65 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 23:01:39

Answer/Reply:

My doctor wanted me to take cholesterol medicine but I refused because I don't tolerate drugs very well. I started taking organic flaxseed oil and my total cholesterol dropped from 226 to 192 in three months. I take one tablespoon each day.

68year old female

69 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 23:41:48

Answer/Reply:

I get flashes if I stay up for more than an hour after I take it. I also get prickly heat when I sweat now. Sometimes the flashes feel like fire inside but I am so cold all the time that it is not that bothersome. You have to remember to take aspirin 1 hour before the Niaspan it really helps. I would recommend it .

55 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-19 00:08:47

Answer/Reply:

Ask your Dr. to lower the dosage of your cholesterol pill and ask for Lovaza or Omacor .These pills really help your cholesterol and lessen the side effects (pain).

78 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-19 02:54:13

Answer/Reply:

My husband took niacin but only for two days. He had hot flashes so bad his face would turn so red i thought his blood pressure was sky high. He had to stop it. he is on crestor and has the leg pains. He has been on it for a year.

43 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-19 08:48:42

Answer/Reply:

I'm 61 and have been on Crestor for a number of years. Don't blame it on the Crestor...yet. Make sure you're drinking enough water, at least 20 - 32 oz. daily and you have an intake of enough Manganese, Potassium, Magnesiu, vitamin D, and your electrolytes. If I forget to drink enough water, my legs also cramp up on me.

63 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-19 13:54:45

Answer/Reply:

I have given in and started to take medicine for my high cholesterol too. I tried Lipitor first, did not like the side effects at all, muscle pain and my hair falling out were the most troublesome.
My doctor has changed me to Crestor, still have the muscle pain. She has put me on 2 Tylenol PM in the evening, it dulls the pains in my major muscles enough for me to sleep, I also take a 3mg Meletonin (a natural mineral to help you sleep)(be sure to check with your doctor before taking this and any other "natural" supplements to make sure it is compatable with your meds)
I have done some research and it seems that muscle pain is common with all "statin" drugs.
I hate the daily nagging pains, but have had one stroke and was lucky, cannot risk another.
Yes, I got horrible flashes with Niacin, check with your doc, you may be on too high a dose.
Good Luck from an "Oldie, but a Goodie"

57 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-19 14:32:50

Answer/Reply:

I am taking Tricor, it works just as well Crestor. I no longer have leg cramps. I hope this works for you.

64 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-19 15:47:33

Answer/Reply:

Crestor is a great drug, it works. But, if your body reacts to Statons you will develop great pains in your joints due to inflamation caused by Statons. Why don't Doctors tell us about this horrible side affect?

59 year old Male

60 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-19 16:40:21

Answer/Reply:

The niacin gave me hot flashes and red rashes. I wouldn't advise taking it. The Crestor is probably giving you the leg pain. I used to get it when I was on Liptor. I take simvastatin now and I don't have the leg pain. I take the omega-3 oil pills twice a day too, not sue if it is helping, but my levels are down. I am 51 years old.

52 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-19 20:42:10

Answer/Reply:

I tried every statin on the market, but after a few months the leg pain and then arm pain would come back. I now realize I can not take statins. If your muscle pain is caused by a statin then you can do permanent damage to your muscles. I still have weakness in my legs that I fear will never go away. Pat, 59

60 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-19 22:06:08

Answer/Reply:

I had to stop taking Crestor because of the side effect. My muscles were so week I had trouble lifting a cup of coffee. If you had any muscle related problem you need to change meds.Its tells you in the drug info sheet your supposed to get with a new prescription. And Niacin will make you itch all over for just a little while but that is because it involes the nervious system. Its good to take if you can get used to the tingly feeling.

55 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-19 22:09:08

Answer/Reply:

I am a 62 year old male and have been taking Simcor 1000/20mg for at least 9mos and have seen dramatic drops in cholesterol & triglycerides. I take it @ bedtime and 30 minutes before I take one Ecotrin aspirin and 2 metamucil "apple wafers" with cold water. I have never experianced much of a problem. DO NOT eat or drink anything hot 1 hour before taking it..... I think i started out on 500mg
and worked up to 1000.

63 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-19 22:25:00

Answer/Reply:

I have taken every thing for lowering Cholestrol never took Crestor. I take Vytorin 10/40 mg. Omega -3 oil pills 3 times a day 1000mg each. 1000 mg Garlic a day. Cinnamon 1000mg a day. I used to have Cholestrol high as over 400. It is down to 239 has went down since I start on Vytorin 2007. Only thing that ever budged my cholestrol. I can not take Niacin I get hot flashes terrible. My doctor said if 10/40 don't do it uping it any more won't do it either. Nothing else worked at all. I 'm 66 year old female. I had a open heart surgery 2by passes 2005. doing ok had no heart damage never had a heart attack. Chest pain. 2 blockges. Have had a heart murmur for years since I have been in High school.When i had openheart surgery my doctorsaid it was ok not bad enought to fix...I am doing fine. My doctor wantsmy cholestrol down lower Thats A ???????????? Not takeing any higher meds..Enough is Enough

66 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-19 22:28:53

Answer/Reply:

I took Niacin for about 4 or 5 months and had a strong reaction every time I took it - my skin would start to flush (my face, arms and neck would get noticeably red - it was embarrassing) and sting and it would last for about 1/2 hour and then go away. After several weeks of taking it, I started developing stomach pains and vomiting. My Dr. determined the Niacin had caused a duodenal ulcer so I immediately stopped taking it (the ulcer quickly went away). I would be cautious about the leg pains you've developed since you've started taking Crestor. Read the side affects information on the packaging and talk to your Dr. I won't take statin drugs because of that. Talk to your Dr. about medication that works within the digestive system, rather than the bloodstream (as the statins do).

51 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-19 23:32:30

Answer/Reply:

Crestor cans increase the risk for developing Rhabdomyolysis.
Rhabdomyolysis is the breakdown of skeletal muscle due to injury and usually manifests as pain in large muscle such of the one you described.
Patients should be informed about this risk and advised them to report any unexplained muscle discomfort or weakness that is unassociated with physical exercise or other trauma to muscles.
If muscle symptoms cannot be explained based on history and physical examination, then the your doctor can perform some test such as CK(creatinine kinase) .In some cases Crestor therapy and other lipid-lowering therapy should be discontinued. I highly recommend that you discuse this issue with you doctor.

Sincerely
Dr M

67 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-20 10:57:01

Answer/Reply:

Get your doctor to do a vitamin D blood study. I was like you ,age and Medicine plus I and was too low on Vit D. So after the doctors supervision on the Vit D and the joint pain went away. Simple fix for me. I sure hope this helps you.I had to take big doses of Vit D at first then after I got my vit D numbers up I slacked off to 2000 mg a day. Ask your doctor about this.

Thanks,

59 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-20 14:13:13

Answer/Reply:

I took cannot take chol. meds. They have stantins in them which can cause fatigue and severe muscle cramping. I used to take vytorin and after about 6 months the aches and pains were incredible. They then switched me to lipitor. The pain was worst. Apparantely my body cannot take the stantins. Know they are trying something called wellacort. but this is 6 pills daily and digest through your stomach and not your liver. I haven't started it yet though. I hope this helps

49 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-20 14:36:28

Answer/Reply:

Have you contacted your doctor about the pain in your legs? When they put me on Crestor and I got pain in my legs they told me to stop taking it immediately and come in to the office. I believe that can be a symptom of a serious problem...so, please call you doctor & tell him/her what you are feeling.

62 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-20 15:50:07

Answer/Reply:

I also found Vytorin to be the only chloresterol med that affect my levels and did not have side effects. It Brought my level from 325-285 to 175. That was the only time my level was ever that low. Right now I am taking Lovastatin...it does not cause my legs to hurt, but it is not bringing my lipid levels down either. I'm giving it another month & then I'll can it as well.

62 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-20 15:58:18

Answer/Reply:

If you have a Costco near you, they have a low cost, coated Slow Niacin supplement that prevents the Niacin from giving you those annoying, challenging flushes. Niacin will drop your Triglycerides and cholesterol right away and keep them low with continued usage. That way you can wean yourself off those horrible pharmaceuticals (Crestor) that you are taking that are giving you the damaging side effects you mention. The Fish Oil, Niacin, and CoQ10 should be enough to keep your cholesterol low.

60 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-20 16:06:52

Answer/Reply:

If you take the slow release niacin you should not get flushing. I took it for 10 years before it started flushing (hot flash) and it controlled my hdl but now forced to take simvastatin which also works but may give muscle pain in high dose. try to keep your dose to 20 mgs or less on any statin and you should be ok.

63 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-20 16:31:42

Answer/Reply:

I too was having leg pains with my Cholesterol meds so I started taking smaller dose 2 times a day instead of one full dose a day. It helped a lot with leg cramps. Did same thing with my High Blood Pressure med when I got dizzy on full dose at one time, so I split that pill and now I don't get dizzy. I cannot take Niacin even 25 mg. It makes my whole body feel like it is on fire from within. Terrible stuff. If you decide to take it start with a tiny dose. It is good for cholesterol but I cannot stand the horrible flushing and burning it causes. You can also change the Cholesterol med to one that doesn't state leg cramps as one of its biggest complaints. (They all cause leg problems but some less than others.).

62 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-21 13:54:26

Answer/Reply:

I tried niacin several years ago when I first learned I had high cholesterol. It definitely caused me to have hot flashes. The only positive thing about that side effect is that it has given me an understanding of what my wife goes through when experiencing hot flashes due to menopause. I have since been on Lipitor for several years now with few, if any, side effects.

61 year old male.

62 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-21 19:33:01

Answer/Reply:

I was on Niaspan. I came home one day and my ears started to burn and my stomach was red. My son started to bring me to the emergency room when I had a some kind of seizure in the car. It was only for a few seconds. The Doctors said it was an allergic reaction and it could have been the Niaspan. They were not sure what caused the reaction. I never had this before.

62 yr old female

63 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-21 19:50:40

Answer/Reply:

When I was told that I had high cholesterol, my doctor wanted to place me on medication right off the bat. I informed her that we had a lot of things that we could do first, and it turns out that I was correct. I still do not take medication for cholesterol.

Here is what we did: First, there is a cholesterol diet, and I follow that as much as possible, which for a 'meat and potatoes' person is interesting but getting easier. I also take 1000 mg of fish oil three times a day. And lastly, I have a recumbent bike (cannot use any other exercise equipment) and I ride that every day that I can. At one point I was up to 2 miles three times a day, but now that is too much for me ~ so I have backed off to 3/4 of a mile twice a day.

My cholerterol is being measured again in June, so we will see if the exercise had that big of an impact or not.

59 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-22 01:10:44

Answer/Reply:

I did ALOT of the Same! Two weeks ago they discovered a 100% Blockage at the bottom of my Aortia. They put in 2 stents, the PAIN in walking is going Away! PRAISE GOD!!!
I Suggest a Ultra Sound of your arteries. Sure MADE A BIG DIFFERENCE WITH ME!
Please let me know if you do this & the results. gallenboyd@homail.com

51 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-22 01:25:26

Answer/Reply:

I am allergic to any Statins (causes muscle pain) so I have been taking ZETIA (non-statin) and Cholesterol is OK.

44 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-22 12:19:32

Answer/Reply:

I take 4000 mg of fish oil daily half in the morning the rest at night to control my cholesterol, I have a bad case of plugging up in my heart , and this seams to be working good ,check with your doc though some of the other meds that I tried caused pain , and even nose bleeds! 41year old male

41 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-22 20:21:10

Answer/Reply:

In response to your query regarding niacin. I too take all the medications you mention for high cholesterol and high tryglycerides. I take the niacin at night and do not take anything prior or with it and I do not have any flushing or discomfort from it. You might want to talk with your doctor about lowering your dosage of the Crestor if your numbers are good. I take the lowest dose, 10 mg. after lowering my numbers significantly. I have not noticed any muscle or leg pains since I have been on the lower dose. Good luck and watch your diet closely. My doctor told me "not even olive oil" and I eat very little meat or dairy products.

54 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-23 21:06:55

Answer/Reply:

Please be extremely careful taking niacin in high doses whether over the counter or prescription. My husband was given high does of Niacin after heart surgery (triple bypass), and it caused him to develop Type 2 Diabetes. The doctor told him it would go away when he stopped taking the Niacin, but it did not. He wound up having to take insulin shots 3 three to five times a day. Please consult with your doctor and find some other way to treat your cholesterol.

66 year old female

67 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-24 01:53:32

Answer/Reply:

I'm 52 an have a case of heart disease, high blood pressure & Cholesterol. My doctor put me on Zocor, 80 mg. & I get the flushing every other day but, mine only lasts @ 5-10 mins. & I usually don't notice it cause I have a/c on all the time during the spring, summer & fall months! Hope it helps, you're not alone!!!!!!

54 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-24 11:33:55

Answer/Reply:

I took Nicain not only hot flashes but I turned beet red. I'd rather have the hot flashes. This was before I knew what they were GOOD LUCK

58 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-24 22:02:51

Answer/Reply:

You can get "flush free" niacin tablets easily over the counter. They helped my total cholesterol, but not my triglycerides. My husband has found that taking a magnesium supplement helps the muscle pain in his arms from Zocor.

44 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-25 11:14:37

Answer/Reply:

I have been using a over the counter Niacin for many years now. I started out using just regular niacin and it caused flushing and the itching that was unbearable. I turned red as a beet. After suffering through the flushing and the itching, someone told me to try the non-flushing type. So I did. No flushing or itching, but later talked to my doctor about my findings and she said it was not doing me any good. The non-flushing did not work. So back to the flushing and itching. Later I found a time release niacin. I take 1000mg twice a day and I hardly ever get flushing or the itching. And if I do it only last maybe 2 minutes or so. I asked my doctor about it and she said time release was good. That I got the effects without the flushing or itching. So give the time release niacin a try. Good Luck!

53 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-25 11:20:54

Answer/Reply:

My Dr. also used to be a pharmacist, she said not to take fish oil capsules with cholesterol medicine as they would cancel each other out. She also said to take a full aspirin a half hour before taking niaspan (niacin) to help prevent the hotflashes. Also to eat something with the niaspan. I finally had to quit taking it because I didn't just have hotflashes, I would turn beat red all over and get panicky feeling.

58 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-25 16:57:24

Answer/Reply:

Your story sounds much like mine. I changed doctors since my former one wouldn't listen to anything negative about statins. My new doctor prescribed Niaspan, with an aspirin for the hot flashes. but after the first few nights, I forgot to take the aspirin. After1 month, I've never had a hot flash at all! And...the leg pains and cramps have disappeared! The mfg. of Niaspan sends you lots of educational material, and offers a help call line too. Good luck.

71 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-25 18:21:38

Answer/Reply:

i am a 55 year old female and i have been on all of the staitin drugs! Every time the doc puts me on one, about 6 months later i can hardly walk, i an almost cripple, and i soon as i get off the drug ( within a week, i feel 100% better, pain-free. I have decided to take my chances !!

56 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-26 08:31:33

Answer/Reply:

I used Niacin for several years for cholesterol and frequently had problems with flushing and it didn't really help lower my cholesterol. Now I just take lipitor and don't have the side effects of pain in my legs. You may be having an allergic reaction to the medication. I would suggest you check with the doctor who prescribed it to see if there is another medicine that's just as effective and won't have the side effects you are experiencing.

60 year old Female (Jill W., Brookline MA)

61 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-26 09:01:06

Answer/Reply:

you dont need alot of niacin sounds like you need potassium more colestrol meds takes it out of you i know from experience

45 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-26 21:30:17

Answer/Reply:

the pain in your legs is from the cholestrol meds, tell your doctor immediately!!! if not taken care of fast enough the damage is irreversable, take it from me, im dealing with it now! As for niacin, the flushings are normal and can get very bad even when taking the low dose asprin, ask about tripilix, thats what i was switched to and i have had no ill effects!

35 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-27 18:22:11

Answer/Reply:

My Dr told me to take an aspirin about 1/2 hour before taking the 5oo mg of slo niacin at bedtime. I only had 1 night of flushing. From then on I have no flushing. I cannot take Statin drugs of any kind or I have such muscle pain I fell like I could curl up and die of pain.Sev3eral Drs have insisted that I had to take Statin Drugs and would insist that this one or that one would not cause me any problem. They all coused me the terrible pain and I refuse to ever take it again.
If you are diabetic and taking Lantus at bedtime titer up to 50 if your morning sugar is too high. I also take Novolog before each meal starting at 10 and going up depending on what the reading was on my meter and what I was going to eat.

78 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-27 21:22:57

Answer/Reply:

I have been on LIPTOR for years also a aspirin and fish oil.I take 1000mg of time released NIACIN ,i take all of theses at night just before sleep it helps to sleep through the sweats.You should start of on a very low dose of NIACIN and work your way up it has really helped my levels,at one time i was over 400 NOW 101

57 year old female

55 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-30 10:21:39

Answer/Reply:

My dr. went to extremes to get my HDL/LDL balanced, triclycerides down and general cholesterol readings down. At one point, I was on five pills a day - statins, niacin, and combo drugs and, though the cholesterol came down, the leg pain, fatigue, flushing, etc. just got worse. The one issue we both ignored was blood sugar - which was "high/borderline". After five years and thousands of dollars in meds and tests, I was declared diabetic. Diabetes is known for causing a low HDL and high triglycerides. Once I started treatment for the diabetes, my cholesterol levels fell rapidly and my HDL/LDL balance was better than normal. I keep the triglycerides in check with regular exercise and still take a small dose of generic Zocor daily. Make sure your doctor is investigating all the other possible or related causes.

56 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-30 15:42:43

Answer/Reply:

If you are taking a high dosage that might give you the pains. I had the problem in my legs at night and have tried every different kind of cholesterol medication and affected me the same way. I then went back to Crestor at a lower dosage and it has worked. No pain. And it still keeps my cholesterol in line.l

73 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-30 18:27:08

Answer/Reply:

Stop taking the Crestor immediately and see your family physician. This could be the beginning of a very dangerous side effect. Only a small number of patients will get this.For now stop the Crestor

50 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-30 22:16:57

Answer/Reply:

Talk with your doctor or cardiologist. Crestor does cause leg pains. Until my bypass surgery I did not have a choice - after the surgery my cardiologist decreased the doseage until I could tolerate Crestor. My cardiogolist describes my arteries as "crappy" - Crestor is a must for me. 6 months after surgery we decided to increase the dose and I was able to tolerate the doseage the doctors preferred. Occasionally I experience the leg cramps but the discomfort is worth the benefit.

56 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-31 11:44:44

Answer/Reply:

Yes! Go to the wal-mart and buy RED YEAST RICE. Take 2 caps am and pm daily.
I did this on the advice of my holistic nurse, It REALLY workes! much to the surprise of my GP.
Fown from 268 to 194 in 1 month!
Those are stats from my bloodwork, Or course, if you leave off the caps, your cholesterol will rise again.
Red Yeast Rice doesn't interfere with any other meds. YEAH!!!!!

Deming female 50+

52 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-31 13:51:08

Answer/Reply:

i had problem with all cholesterol meds causing severe muscle pain...my doctor put me on Niaspan...not niacin, but Niaspan......heavy dosages of it.....havent been in to check my cholesterol as of late, but no side effects...the one drawback, there is no generic, so it is pricey...

57 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-31 15:49:26

Answer/Reply:

i had the same trouble with all cholesterol medicine........try Niaspan....not niacin, but Niaspan.....it is by prescription only....my doc put me on a high dosage of it...no side effects, only disadvantage.....no generic...kinda pricey

57 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-31 15:55:51

Answer/Reply:

I've been treating my hyper colestr. for a number of yrs now. First was LOPID (6mo/ 60pt drop), then ZOCOR (dropped 120pts in 60days), now it's LIPITOR (good maintenance). What I'm saying is there's a lot of choices for this problem. Keep changing up until you find the right one for you. And yes, niacin can give a full body heat fash that will last 5min to 60min. If your going to take it, be aware it's not a pleasent experience but it should pass. I personally witnessed someone taking niacin for the first time, and he went into a full blown panic over the experience!

55 year old Male

Posted: 2009-05-31 20:53:10

Answer/Reply:

I take a baby asprin 81 mg. 30 minutes before the niacin at bed time.I don't get the hot flashes.

66 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-01 15:21:08

Answer/Reply:

I would check and see what else I could take for the Cholesterol now that you have it down to a good number. One a Day Vitamins have something in them for Cholesterol so try that. Yes Niacin does make you feel real hot after taking it.

72 year old Male

Posted: 2009-06-01 15:54:27

Answer/Reply:

I am on Zetia and have no side affects. I started out on Lipitor but my liver enzymes went up and my doctor switched me to Zetia.

55 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-02 01:54:14

Answer/Reply:

How much CoQ10 are you taking? I was told to take 100 to 300 mg a day. Which has helped.
I also take cinnimon bark.

62 year old Male

Posted: 2009-06-02 09:53:04

Answer/Reply:

I take 40mg of crestor, fish oil twice a day amounting to 2400mg, zetia 10mg, niaspan 2000mg. I am on huge doses of everything. I find taking a 325 enteric coated aspirin with the niaspan helps. When I first started taking the niaspan at 1000mg I had a few uncomfortable nights and then it went away. I was worried I'd have the hot flashes and flushing with the 2000mg but I don't. I really think the aspirin helps.
As far as the leg cramps you really should check with your Doctor. The crestor could be causing that. It affects the muscles in some people. My son can't take statins because it breaks down his muscles.

52 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-02 12:12:15

Answer/Reply:

You might ask your doctor about switching you to Lipitor. That is what my doctor put me on instead of the Crestor 3 years ago after my stent implant. He had me on the 40 MG tabs at first then suggested going to the 80 MG and splitting the tablets in half for a cost savings. The pharmacy breaks them for me without me even asking them to do that. I also take fish oil pills, 3 pills - 1000 to 1200 MG each, at the beginning of my day. The fish oil also helps with keeping the shoulder joints and knee joinst lubed and I've quit taking the "Move Free" pills that I was taking for my joints. Hope this helps you.

60 year old Male

Posted: 2009-06-02 15:27:12

Answer/Reply:

I am a 65 yr. old woman that was put on crestor and Coq10. I also started having very bad leg pains. They switched me to Lipitor and I am not having any trouble with leg pain. I have been on Lipitor for about 4 months.

66 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-02 15:40:46

Answer/Reply:

I got on Crestor a few years back and it got me in a bad shape. I was getting nauseous. My stomach started giving me trouble. They checked my blood and it had messed me up. I wish I could remember what all was happening to me, but if you feel something is wrong, it is best to tell your doctor. I started hurting all over in my legs. My muscles hurt also. I couldn't sleep some nights. I have stopped taking simastatin also, to see if it is causing me to hurt again. I'm not telling you to quit your medicine . Get your blood checked to see what is going on.W.R in Cochran, Ga.

86 year old Male

Posted: 2009-06-02 22:44:14

Answer/Reply:

Cholesterol medication is most likely the cause of your leg pains. Inform your Dr. of this. You may need to try a different medication or stop Statins intirely. Niacin flushes can be quite bothersome. Try taking a much smaller dose for a couple of weeks then slowly increase the dose. Exercise is the best way to lower your cholesterol. Diet is another factor. Try increasing the soluble fiber in your diet. Do not take medications together or with the increased fiber. Hang in there!

53 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-03 20:27:59

Answer/Reply:

I am a 63 year old female. I've been on Lipitor for 3 years and my cholerserol level is very good. I haven't had any problems yet. You may see what your MD thinks about Lipitor.
Good Luck.

64 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-04 15:59:52

Answer/Reply:

I was on Prevastatin 40 mg and was weak and had trouble walking. My cholesterol was up taking that particular statin. The doctor put me back on Lipitor 20mg and have no side effects with that amount and cholesterol is below 200 with taking that amount, Lipitor also comes in 10mg, so you could start on that. I also take 1mg Lovaza 2 x a day ( a RX fish oil)...between that combo of Lipitor and Lovaza and oatmeal, my cholesterol is excellent. Worth a try!
64 year old female

65 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-05 00:37:03

Answer/Reply:

I know for a lot of people who suffer from high cholesterol diet and exercise is not enough.
I suffer from nerve and muscle damage and many other chronic illness so I refuse to take another drug for a disorder I believe I can control thorough diet and exersize.
When I first found out about my high cholesterol it was over 400. I went to a dietician and within three months my cholestrol level was at 107.
I started studing Herbal remedies on line and found several herbs and foods that help decrease my level. My exercising had to stop due to spine surgery six monhs ago and I go in for more next month. I do walk and do stretching exersizes but I am very limited.
Last check my cholesterol was at 117.
Some foods and changes I have made.
Avacdos weekly
virgin coconut oil
more garlic
organic blueberries
fresh rosemary.
fresh chives.
I take fish oil, flax, with omega 3 supplements.
peanuts
beans
oatmeal and yogurt daily.
NO FRIED FOODS.
If you want to want to cheat, have nuts in your cookies or cake.
If you use salt, use sea salt, it has 25+ less sodium.

47 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-05 05:47:28

Answer/Reply:

I had a reaction to all Statins. Took Lipator for several years then started having leg pains. Doctor tried me on all the rest of the statins with the same result. Have been on 1000 mg. Niaspan for three years and found the best way to take it is to eat 1 or 2 Triscuit crackers just before bedtime and take the Niaspan. When asleep you are not aware of the reactions. This has worked for me. Niaspan is the time released version of Niasin and is prescription required so it is more expensive but gives you time to get to sleep.
79 year old male

81 year old Male

Posted: 2009-06-05 09:35:00

Answer/Reply:

I have been on lipitor 10 mg for 6 months I have had no muscle cramping or anything else.I t handled my readings which are good now.Does anyone get swollen legs from the statins? One leg is 1 1/2 inch bigger than the other,at times but it seems like my legs ankes are more swollen since taking this ????

55 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-05 09:48:09

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

No iGuard members have reported swelling in the legs with Lipitor. According to the product information for Lipitor, swelling has not reported as a side effect of Lipitor. If the swelling continues or worsens, please make an appointment to discuss it with your doctor as swelling can be signs of other problems.

Posted: 2009-06-08 15:53:35

Answer/Reply:

Has anyone reported flushing with Lovastatin?

73 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-05 10:45:41

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

Typical side effects with lovastatin are muscle aches, headache, rash, stomach aches. Less than 1% iGuard patients taking lovastatin reported "rash/skin" issues. However, flushing is typically different that a rash or skin side effect. There are other medications that cause flushing, such as niacin which is also used to help reduce cholesterol levels. If the flushing is still bothering your, please follow up with your doctor to have this symptom evaluated.

Posted: 2009-06-08 00:34:01

Answer/Reply:

My sister is on Crestor and has had problems with her hips and legs hurting. Her doctor told her to try Osteo-BioFlex. She did try it and after about a week she said it was like she never had the pain at all.

61 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-05 18:05:45

Answer/Reply:

My wife and I have tried every statin drug on the market including Lipitor and Crestor which are the worst. The pains in the hips and legs were so bad we could hardly walk. I took Pravastatin last about 6 months ago and my palms of my hands broke out in a rash and has not disappeared yet. We would never take another statin drug and recommend one to stay with a good quality fish oil and a low fat diet. I believe that the whole statin drug promotion is a conspiracy by the pharmacudical
companies to increase their profits and does not increase longivity of or quality of life. I am 68 and woke up this morning without an ache in my body!

68 year old Male

Posted: 2009-06-06 19:03:11

Answer/Reply:

I don't know about your other comments but I do know that you can get the non flush Niacin. It will not make you feel like you are having hot flashes. You get it over the counter. We buy a big bottle of Niacin at Sam's. You should check with your doctor about the front of your legs hurting. I don't know if that is a side effect or not. The front of my left leg hurts whether I walk or not but it is caused from the sciatica I have because of my back.

62 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-18 16:44:00

Answer/Reply:

I have been taking lipator and it has lowered my cholesterol approx. 150 pts..

I do take calcium and magnesium for the cramping. I do get a little cramping

once in a while , but they are not bad at all.

69 yr.old female

69 year old Female

Posted: 2009-06-22 14:25:27

Answer/Reply:

My cholesterol is a little on the high side, so i went back to buying Cholest-off found in the Vitiaman section. It has helped me a lot, and it 's natural. I hate takining meds for everything. I have to take Celexa 40mg/and temazepam/1 benadryl with it at night. I'm doing a lot better now. I'm hoping to be able to come off my depression stuff by the end of this year.
Hope you find something that helps you. Give Cholest-off a try it won't hurt you.
Karen Angold 56

58 year old Female

Posted: 2009-03-13 21:43:31

Answer/Reply:

Sound great about Cholest-off!!! I am going to buy and try it. Can you explain me about what is Celexa 40mg? temazepam/1? and benadryl?? I never heard of it...thank you.

58 yrs old and female

59 year old Female

Posted: 2009-03-17 16:26:02

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

I am 66 year female i have been on Vytorin for more then 2 years now .It's the only thing that bought my cholestrol down. But noticed some Change in my eye sight also...Need to strain to see sometimes..I don't like to take Statins at all. But what do yuh do listen to the doc. i also take Omega fish oil 3 a day 1000mg . Garlic pill 1000mg and Chinnamon pill 500mg.At one time mine was 0ver 400. 239 now after try every thing in the book over a few years. They still want it down to 200.... I have had open heart surgery 2 by passesin 2005. Don't know what else to do.

Posted: 2009-03-16 21:59:04

Answer/Reply:

My mother died of cryptogenic cirrhosis of the liver (meaning that they have no idea how she came down with this condition as she was never much of a drinker and never tested positive for hepatitis, was not a drug user, etc.), and a couple of her doctors told me to stay away from statin drugs if at all possible, as there may be a genetic link to this type of cirrhosis and statins can definitely affect the liver in an adverse way.
High cholesterol runs on my mom's side of the family, yet people live relatively long lives (into their 80s and 90s) with few heart problems, even with the high cholesterol. I am involved in a study called HeartScore, which may be a national study, although I'm not sure. The study does not prescribe drugs or supplements, but the medical professionals there seem to be more open than some doctors are to using non-prescription remedies. It's also important to note that, through this study, I have found out that I have Type A cholesterol, which is like little ping pong balls bouncing around in my blood. Type B is the sticky type which collects on the walls of the arteries and can block them and Type A/B is a combination of the two. I would try to have this kind of typing done to see just what kind of a risk you have. Having Type A definitely drops your risk of having heart problems. (I also have a high HDL number - the "healthy" type of cholesterol, which is protective.)
I have seen my cholesterol drop by using supplements, rather than by using prescription statins. I take a combination supplement called Healthy Cholesterol Support from Swanson Vitamins, as well as taking Omega 3 fish oil, Soy Select (also from Swanson) and garlic. Using these supplements, my total cholesterol has fallen by over 50 points. I recently added Centrum Cardio into the mix and I'm hoping to get it down a little more. I have high-deductibel insurance and must pay for prescription meds out-of-pocket for the most part, and these supplements are less expensive than if I was paying for a statin. I think that it's important to note that, when I began taking the supplements, I purposely did NOT alter my eating or exercise patterns as I wanted to see if the supplements alone would have any effect on my cholesterol numbers. That's when I was given the news that my total number had fallen by over 50 points. I have since upped my exercise and I'm trying to eat more fruits and vegetables, so I'm hoping that will help, also.
Good luck - keep looking for things other than prescription drugs, since you seem to be having adverse reactions to them. And if your doctor insists that those are the only things which can help, then look for a new doctor!

51 year old Female

Posted: 2009-03-16 22:09:12

Answer/Reply:

My mother also had the same liver problem and never drank or had hepatitis, nor was a drug user. I never heard of anyone else with this problem until now. I cannot take the statin drugs either due to severe side effects and elevated liver enzymes. I continue to have high cholesterol even with diet and excercise. So thanks for the Swanson Vitamin info, I'll give it a try. Best of luck to you.

59 year old

Posted: 2009-03-19 14:07:29

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

Provachol is probably one of the very first cholesterol lowering meds. Are you taking it at night before you go to sleep?

Posted: 2009-03-17 09:25:25

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

I have been taking statins for 8 plus years. I have noticed poor night vision and extreme sensitivity to bright lights in both eyes. However, I need bright light to read. I do have one cataract in one eye that the doctor said he usually sees in 40-year-olds. I am 62. However, the eye sensitivity is from both eyes.

Posted: 2009-03-17 21:23:56

Answer/Reply:

I think the fish oil capsules are to be taken 2 times a day for optimal benefits.

51 year old Female

Posted: 2009-03-20 10:04:15

Answer/Reply:

I also had severe reactions to lots of the statins. Then my Dr. put me on pravochol. She says it is processed differently that the other ones. I had no trouble with it, after so many tries. Your vision problems could be from high blood sugar (diabetes), if your triglycerides are also high, that could be an indication of diabetes.

58 year old Female

Posted: 2009-03-24 00:42:40

Answer/Reply:

I have had lots of problems with cholesterol and high blood pressure. I take 4 fish oil every day. Two in the am and two in the pm. Even when I don't eat as I should, everything stays close to normal. My cholesterol stays at <65 hdl, >60 ldl, and being diabetic triglycerides close to 100. I stay with the lisinopril just in case though. I swear by fish oil, but I don't know if it will work the same for everyone. There doesn't seem to be any side effects with the fish oil either.

56 year old Female

Posted: 2009-03-24 19:25:13

Answer/Reply:

My brother has many side affects from statins too. You may want to ask your doctor if you could try Niaspan. It is a high concentrate of vitamin B and is time released. He helped my brother alot.
Best of luck

58 year old Female

Posted: 2009-03-25 16:23:00

Answer/Reply:

My previous doctor put me on a medication that I've not heard anything about, while on it more since I stopped taking it and she dropped me as a patient because I questioned her about it. The medicine was Advicor and had really bad side effects, my leg muscles were very weak, I could hardly walk. I started taking supplements instead and was successful with time release niacin for a while, then I was placed on Niaspan by my doctor while I could afford it. I then went back to timed release niacin which is what I'm on now. My recent blood test shows that my Cholesterol is slightly high by a few points but I know that I can get that under control again easily. Statin drugs does have side effects but can be good short term I believe until your levels come into normal range, then you can ask your doctor to switch you to regular Niacin, time release. Statins do effect certain the chemistry in your body by depleting it of certain necessities, therefore a supplement should be taken to replenish them. One nutrient that is depleted is CoQ10, ask your doctor what supplements you should take while taking these medications.

55 year old Female

Posted: 2009-03-29 03:45:42

Answer/Reply:

You should ask your Doctor about taking CO-Q10. I was having lots of pain in my legs from the statin drugs. I then tried taking 100 mgs. of CO-Q10 and the pain eased up quite a bit. I then went up to 200 mgs. per day and for the most part the pain has stopped. Try it and see if it works for you.

64 year old Male

Posted: 2009-03-30 15:17:03

Answer/Reply:

I also have a problem with medication , for my high cholesterol. I have tried lipitor , and a couple of other medications. But I kept having muscle spasms, and leg cramps. So my Dr. gave me a prescription for NIACIN, not over the counter. I am not saying it is for every one, but ask your Dr. It has helped me!

52 year old Female

Posted: 2009-04-01 01:13:36

Answer/Reply:

I found that even natural remedies can have side effects (especially if you take any other prescription meds) so be sure you tell your doctor what you are trying. Pravachol did not give me the side effects that other statins did but it also didn't lower my cholestral as much. Eventually I tried Lipitor again at 10 mg and am doing ok.

57 year old Female

Posted: 2009-04-04 12:51:24

Answer/Reply:

As well as taking FISH OIL try SLO RELEASE NIACIN take just before bed,start wiyh a low mg then add to it as you can till you get to 1,000mg this really helped me.Side affects will cause flushing all over body,makes you feel on fire thats why you start with a low mg,by taking it before bed you kind of sleep through side affects.Also ask you're docter about taking vitiam B'S this helps also.I had a heart attack 20 yrs ago this has help me keep CHOLESTEROL DOWN,MINE WAS 500 NOW BELOW 125.

FEMALE
AGE 59

55 year old Female

Posted: 2009-04-18 11:09:28

Answer/Reply:

I have always had high cholesterol even when I was young and thin (265-380). I tried stains and Tricor but both had side effects like stabbing pains and shortness of breath. I take phamaceutical grade fish oil, garlic, and red rice yeast and all of my numbers have improved. I highly reccomend red rice yeast which I understand to be the natural form of where they get statins from. I have had no side effects and I can increase as needed. I was also told by my doctor that if I'm taking red rice yeast that I should take CO-Q 10 so I do. Odorless garlic-1000mg -1once a day, CO-Q 10-30mg- 2 twice a day, red rice yeast 600mg-3 twice a day, fish oil 1250mg-1 twice a day.

55 year old Female

Posted: 2009-02-18 16:26:21

Answer/Reply:

You should listen to your Dr. I am a 58 year old male never worried about my chols. till I got to 54 and two heart stents irrg. heart rate and tachardia. My point your young yet as was I ,you may very well regret your choice years later as I I could have been 6 feet in the ground but thanks to a agressive cardiologist Im doing well if you can get it down ldl get your hdl up and your trig. to where they should be bless you,go for it but if you cant try the statins also for heart problems and family history is a factor if it runs in your family your at a high risk for heart trouble best of luck

58 year male

60 year old Male

Posted: 2009-02-18 17:01:30

Answer/Reply:

It would be good for you to pick up a copy of the "8 week chloresterol cure" by Robert Kowalski. When I was your age, my Total Chloresterol was 320. By using oat bran and Niacin (1 gram/day), my chloresterol dropped to 170. Dr. didn't believe the lab results, so we retested in 2 weeks. Same result. Currently I follow the same routine, but I use a sustained release niacin. I have been on Niacin now for over 20 years.

69 year old Male

Posted: 2009-02-18 17:43:22

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

What is Oat bran? is that cereal? Niacin?? is that for vitamin? Let me know...thank you.

Posted: 2009-03-17 16:39:23

Answer/Reply:

I so agree with you. Please let me know how the Centrum Cardio and Omega-3 helps with the numbers. I would be very interested to know.

53 year old Female

Posted: 2009-02-18 18:09:09

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

When I was your age I fought taking the drugs as well. I followed a strick diet, exercised regularly and had some success like you but I never could get my cholesterol below 212. My advice, take the drugs, you are in a high risk category.

Male 67

Posted: 2009-02-18 18:31:15

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

I also had high overall cholesterol readings in the area of about 235. Initially, I was taking the statin Zocor, and although it did bring my overall cholesterol down to 180, I had a good bit of discomfort from muscle cramps and similar musculo-skeletal discomforture.

When I discussed these problems with my physician (a D.O.), and told her that I was going to stop taking the statins, she suggested that I try taking 20 mg of Policosanol once a day (before bedtime), and 1,200 mg of Red Yeast Rice twice a day. Both of these herbals are available at places like General Nutrition Center (GNC) or similar places.

Although this combination of Policosanol and Red Yeast Rice are not as effective as taking a statin Rx, by continuing to watch my diet, exercise regularly, and take the herbals, I have been able to maintain my overall cholesterol between 200 and 220 and enjoy relief from the muscle cramps and other musculo-skeletal discomforts.

In addition to the Policosanol/Red Yeast Rice regimine, I also take 150 mg of Coenzyme Q-10 (Co Q-10) once a day, and 1,200 mg of Fish Oil (Omega 3) after every meal that I do not eat fish. The fish oil and Co Q-10 are also readily available at nutrition centers or even grocery stores and drug stores, and the costs and lack of side effects of these herbal meds is much less than anything from pharmaceuticals.

Posted: 2009-02-18 19:04:12

Answer/Reply:

Omega 3 is effective in lowering triglycerides. Lovaza i a high potency 0mega3 which is most effective in that regard. I doubt that you will see much change in your chlorestol levels. T take crestor, trilipix, and omega3. Yes I get leg pains, but the resuls are outstanding. My LDL is below 100 and ny HDL is 47. You also might want to get tested to see if you have little or large LDL---it's the little that clogs arteries.

87 year old Male

Posted: 2009-02-18 20:21:28

Answer/Reply:

A couple of other things to keep in mind too..... if you eat a lot of cheese, cut back or eliminate it all together. You'd be surprised how much your cholesterol numbers will drop with just that change. A glass of red wine after dinner also helps to lower cholesterol. Even the pink zinfindels work, if I spelled that right. Most red wines are too woodsy for us, but the one I mentioned is fine for us. I must say too, we are not drinkers in this family. We started on the wine after some research and then my sister was the first to try it and it lowered hers quite a bit. I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I do remember that it dropped quite significantly. I cut out most of the cheese in my diet and dropped 150 points.

47 year old Female

Posted: 2009-02-18 21:01:25

Answer/Reply:

You would be wise to begin taking the statin and lowering your cholestrol. My Mother and Father both had high cholestrol and high blood pressure and suffered strokes and heart attacks that killed them. I have inherited their conditions. I am proactive in controlling my blood pressure with prescription drugs and a statin for the cholestrol. My cholestrol is now 194 .
Don't play doctor and try to treat yourself. Exercise is also extremely important.
If you want to live a good life, stave off the BP and cholestrol.

73 year old Female

Posted: 2009-02-19 01:08:56

Answer/Reply:

Be very careful of Statin drugs. They can cripple you if you are sensitive to their effects. They work in the mevlonate enzyme pathway and inhibit a reductase generation that is essential to cholesterol formation in the liver. They also inhibit the generation of CoQ10, HEMEa and dolichols - ALL essential to good health !! Cholesterol is not the problem here; it is INFLAMMATION! Your LDL, if it is dense (small and tight) will snag on inflamed walls the way link does in the dryer creating a sticky mass bandage whilst low density LDL particles (light and fluffy) will simply roll by. Finding out if you have low or high density LDL is a key to management. Also, statins ARE a fair anti-inflammatory medication and that may be its true benefit. There is still a LOT of on-going conversation about the role of cholesterol in cardio incidents, and there are any number of active studies going on about the dangers of statin drugs (DR. Mootha, Harvard; Dr. Golomb, UCSD; Dr. Vladutiu, NYU @ Buffalo). Do your due diligence and search these names on the internet to find out what is being learned !

68 year old Male

Posted: 2009-03-02 11:52:22

Answer/Reply:

well spoken and good advice,also for the party on niacin also good but many can not take it also niacin can have some nasty side effects

60 year old Male

Posted: 2009-03-02 12:03:44

Answer/Reply:

I am a 62 year old male who, for the past 20 years has run 3-4 times a week and an average of 20 miles. I weigh 145 pounds. I have always watched the foods I eat(no red meat, eggs,cheeses,or fried food). Under these conditions, my Cholesterol levels were between 230-260. I tried all sorts of vitamins and minerals. Even homepathic remedies and niacin. Nothing really reduced the levels more than 5-8%. My body just produces the stuff. Since 2003 I have been on 10MG Lipitor. No side effects. Cholesterol at 180-190. Everyone reacts differently to medication. Make sure that the ratio of good to bad increases also(HDL/LDL).

63 year old Male

Posted: 2009-03-02 12:34:01

Answer/Reply:

I found that a website called trackyourplaque is an excellent site for advice on how to lower your cholesterol and help in the reversing heart disease (to most cardiologist this is not their main goal) but more and more cardiologist are become preventive cardiologist and have studies to support ways to reverse heart disease. It is very informative and provides answers to such questions as posted here and is supported by professionals.

67 year old Male

Posted: 2009-03-02 14:14:01

Answer/Reply:

When I had my heart attack at age 52, my overall cholesterol was 235, but my LDL was around 170. At the time of my heart attack, my BP was in the area of 140/90, so nothing was really super out-of-whack at that time, plus, as a professional firefighter/paramedic, I got a good bit of exercise.

Following my heart attack, my cardiologist placed me on statins and extended-release niacin to lower my overall cholesterol, increase my HDL, and lower my LDL. It worked. My overall cholesterol went down to 180, my LDL went down to 96, and my HDL went up to 66. I also lost 20 lbs and continued to exercise.

THEN I HAD ANOTHER HEART ATTACK RESULTING IN BYPASS SURGERY.

At that point, I began to research some alternatives to statins because of the potential for liver damage and muscle damage plus the fact that the statins made me feel crummy overall. One of the things I discovered was that cardiovascular disease is more closely related to inflammation than to cholesterol level. Now, although I am still on statins, I always request a CRP (C-reactive protein) test when my doctor performs my semi-annual blood test. An elevated (over 4.0, as I recall) CRP is an indication of inflammation in your body. Not necessarily cardiovascular inflammation, but inflammation. There is a cardiac specific CRP that can be run that will give you a better idea of the level of your cardiovascular inflammation. I watch my cardiovascular inflammation like a hawk, but no longer sweat my overall cholesterol, HDL, and LDL as much as I used to.

My wife, on the other hand, has no cardiac history, and has been able to use homeopathic medications to control her cholesterol, even though she is a diabetic. She has been told by a former M.D. neurosurgeon who now specializes in health medicine to take Policosanol 20 mg once a day, Red Yeast Rice 600 mg once a day, Coenzyme Q-10 (Co Q-10) 150 mg once a day, either fish oil or flaxseed oil 1000 - 1200 mg twice a day, and Niacin 500 mg once a day. In addition, she takes aspirin 81 mg once a day to help cut down on the possibility of blood clots.

The addition of these homeopathic medications plus watching her diet (sugars plus carbohydrates and saturate fats) have done quite well at keeping her cholesterol levels in a decent range. She still struggles sometimes with her CRP levels because of the inflammation caused by her diabetes, but her cholesterol is no longer a contributing factor.

63 year old Male

Posted: 2009-03-03 15:08:05

Answer/Reply:

The Red Yeast Rice is basically the same as a statin. Be careful with this OTC supplement. It can have the same side effects as the statins.

54 year old Female

Posted: 2009-05-18 22:50:38

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Your cholesterol is still too high; you need statins. The doctor who treats himself has a fool for a patient. Now go back to the doctor and face reality.

51 year old Male

Posted: 2009-03-15 00:40:34

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Please be careful of statins. Read my earlier post and, if you are interested, there is a forum site for statin users at Spacedoc.net. It is managed by a former NASA flight surgeon (hence the name). Some statin effects have proven devastating. Learn all you can about them.

68 year old Male

Posted: 2009-03-02 12:02:46

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

Hi! I did not see you mention anything about exercising. Do you know that will help too? What about the natural over the counter Fish Oil? I use it and it helped me a lot! Maybe you should ask your doctor about taking it, just a suggestion. Good -Luck!

Posted: 2008-12-11 08:53:17

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

i have some liver damage the dr. stated it was like i was a heavy drinker,but i dont drink alichol...but i have high chl.i take pravastatin 40mg.

Posted: 2008-12-29 10:06:17

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

i get the musal spasms to , they sent me to the heart dr. and they put me on isasorbide along with a musal relaxer. and are keeping a close watch on me.

Posted: 2008-10-22 16:04:04

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

I have High cholesterol & I was taking Zocor for over 10 yrs my muscle was terrible during that time & is the statin in your muscle that is affected from any cholesterol Rx , I had so many problems;such cramps on my legs in the middle of the night sleeping,both arms muscles hurts,back/shoulder muscles also ...I finally told the Dr. not going to take anymore cholesterol Rx. so he switch to TRICOR 145mg....so far is working for me this is my second months ...no side effects yet....will see .

57yrs Female

Posted: 2009-01-13 17:28:55

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

There are few ways you can manage the flushing (warmth, redness, itching and/or tingling) side effects of Niaspan: 1) you may have an easier time getting used to the flushing symptoms of Niaspan if you slowly work up to the target dose - however, you should work with your doctor to design this plan to work up the desired dose, 2) you can try taking Niaspan at night so the flushing symptoms do not affect your daytime activities, and 3) taking an aspirin 325 mg 1/2 hour before the Niaspan dose may help to reduce the side effects of flushing - but please discuss this with your doctor first since some people should not take aspirin because of specific drug interactions or disease interactions.

Posted: 2008-10-03 15:20:36

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

I'm not a doctor...first let me say that...my mom and I both took Niaspan for cholesterol and both had the horrible burning and flushing after about a month. Apparently your body stores it up and this flushing is what happens when it's built up in your system. My doctor had me taking it at night, before bed, although I forget exactly why. I was having the flushing in the middle of the night and felt like my skin was on fire. I've never felt anything like that before. I took Benadryl and aspirin. My doctor had me quit taking it after that.

Posted: 2008-12-22 14:21:29

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

I suggest you do some walking and do in house exc. The walking is a big help. I too am takeing fish oil, Carlsons with lemon flavoring. Its the best. I take it three times a day, with the Zetia.......drs orders. I also take B complete. Good luck .

Posted: 2009-01-24 22:25:41

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

Red rice yeast worked wonders for me. You should take it with CO-Q 10. Red rice yeast is the natural form of statins. I have had no side effects and all of my numbers have finally improved and I can increase the dose if needed. Here's what I take: red rice yeast-600mg 2 twice a day (I am going to up it to 3 twice a day), pharmaceutical grade fish oil-1250mg 1 twice a day, CO-Q 10-30mg- 2 twice a day and odorless garlic-1000mg 1 once a day.

Posted: 2009-02-18 16:35:21

Answer/Reply:

I have been on Lipitor for several years now along with Plavix, Coreg, Lisinopril, Ultrum, Mobic, Nexium, Trazadone, Welbutron, Alegra, and now Aricept. I take Nexium due to the digestive problems associated with so many meds. I take Ultram and Mobic for joint pain and RLS at night. I take Tazadone to sleep due to all of the other problems. The Welbutron is for depression associated with having to take so many meds. Plavix, Coreg and Lisinopril are for my heart. Aricept was just added 8 weeks ago due to impared cognative functions / Altzhimer's?????? I am a 63 year old very active male in what I think to be good condition - 9 stents and a pumping ratio of around 38% but going strong with volunteer work. *** What can I do - these are too many meds with too many associated problems. I have asked my Doctor to reduce some but to no avail. There is not enough information in these areas but this site is helping fill the gap.

64 year old Male

Posted: 2008-11-11 05:10:07

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

Most medications have benefits and risks. In the case of simvastatin and other cholesterol drugs the benefits of reduced cholesterol and heart protection usually outweigh the small risk of side effects in most people.

If you keep your iGuard profile up to date with your current medication, you will continue to receive any new safety information that comes out from the drug manufacturers, the FDA, and the medical literature. These safety alerts will provide you additional information about what the alert means and what you need to be concerned about.

Posted: 2008-08-19 13:02:18

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

my cholesterol is 250 im taking 20 mg a day will this help me

Posted: 2008-08-27 00:20:26

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

Have you tried zetia (ezetemibe) - it reduces cholesterol absorption and works completely differently from a statin.

Posted: 2008-05-19 20:58:17

Answer/Reply:

Dr. Ray Sahelian, MD ; States in AVERY'S FAQs SERIES BOOKLET, "all about coenzyme-
Q10", Page 33-34, Copy Right 1998.

"...Statins interfere with your body's production of CoQ10 and could actually be harmful to heart muscle,...and showed evidence of mitochondrial ( or energy-production) dysfunction."

"...Most patients respond well to natural therapies. These include increasing fiber intake (such
as psyllium fiber); adding fish ...or fish oil capsules: engage in mild to moderate exercise;
taking antioxidant supplements( Vitamins C&E) including CoQ10."
Always ask a Natural Health-care provider for your doseage amounts and time useage to
be SAFE. Plus use "common sense" at all times! IT'S YOUR LIFE AND HEALTH!

62 year old Male

Posted: 2008-06-09 16:23:00

Answer/Reply:

My husband couldn't take statins either. His doctor prescribed him zetia. Have him ask his doctor about zetia.

57 year old Female

Posted: 2008-11-01 11:59:38

Answer/Reply:

Ask your doctor about Lopid. My husband & I take it with no trouble.

Prior to taking a prescription med for high cholesterol. I was advised to take a fiber supplement & also niacin. If you decide to try the niacin, I highly advise the no flushing version. I made the mistake of taking the regular version & I would break out in hives & my skin would be warm. I would have to take Benadryl to counter-act this.

42 year old Female

Posted: 2008-12-20 11:20:54

iGuard.org Answer/Reply:

what is a nomal cholesterol for a male 64 years old.

Posted: 2008-05-29 10:10:36