Lipitor Pace, Muscle Fatique, Dangerous Drug, Lipitor, Poison
Posted over a year ago
I have been on lipitor about 4 yrs. I am a runner and keep tract of my times. I have been losing about 4% of my speed each year and have recently had a large amount of muscle fatigue. Today a ran a 940 pace and thought I was not going to make it home. Three years ago my average pace was 805. Could the 20mg dosage be causing this problem?
777 - Please look at some of the posts. This dangerous drug causes many side effects, I know, I stopped taking Lipitor 6 months and I still have many side effects after taking the poison for 8 yrs. I am taking natural products now to help my side effects and control my cholesterol.
Swedish - Yes Lipitor and all the other statins could cause the problem that you are describing. Below you will find one of my earlier messages .
I hope that the www-sites have not be censored.
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wrote the message below on March 9th, 2008, but I think it might be useful if I repeat it.
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It`s very disturbing to read all these stories. I really feel for you.
My experience comes from seeing what happened to people close to me.
They all took statins.
I started to look for information on statins, and other medications in 2004 and it continues to this day although two of my relatives are dead.
I have nothing to do with the health or pharmaceutical industry.
I saw the suffering and it made me very angry.
I am an ordinary lady in her sixties who live in Sweden.
The situation is almost the same here as in the U.S.
There is very little discussion about risks/benefits with this kind of medicatications - or others.
I think it`s a good idea to turn to the Internet and books to get other views about the cholesterol issue.
Is it really true that it`s the cholesterol that is causing heart disease?
Are you sure?
Please visit:
www.ravnskov.nu
www.thincs.org
www.spacedoc.net
www.statinalert.org
Also Google "Stopped our statins" and on the names of the different authors below.
Also read:
The Cholesterol Myths (Uffe Ravnskov)
The Great Cholesterol Con (Antony Colpo)
Book with the same title (Malcolm Kendrick)
Overdosed America (John Abramson)
The Truth about the Drug Companies (Marcia Agnell)
Malignant Medical Myths (Joel M. Kauffman)
What if medicine disappeared?
There are many more.
Please look on the Internet for more information about each book.
It´s good to have some other information than the one given by doctors because most of them have been "educated" by the pharmaceutical companies themselves - and why should they talk about risks, side effects etc. They are interested in profits.
Finally - here are some side effects that I have seen:
pains in legs, hands, elbows, shoulders, knees, hips, cracking noise in ribs, muscle weakness, loss of hair, head ache, burning, tingling sensations in hands and feet, numbness, difficulties to swallow, loss of taste, ringing noise in ears, cramps, insomnia, irritation, depression, difficulty with short-term memory and then advancing into more serious problems.
These side effects - for 3 different people - all over 65 - did not come at once.
All of them had taken statins for years (Zocor)
It doesn´t matter which product -all statins have similar side effects.
Search for "Stopped our statins" on Google. It´s a very informative site and under "print articles" there are some articles that you can take along to your doctor for discussion.
I particularly like the one from Weston Price Foundation
and explains the different statin studies and side effects, one of which is shortness of breath..
My relatives also had some other medications which makes it even easier for doctors (and patients) to say that it`s just old age.
I am happy for those who get problems right away because then there maybe a chance for the patient and the doctor to see that there is a connection.
You really have to look out for yourself and the people around you so the best thing you can do is to inform yourself.
Good Luck.
Drmike4777 - The answer is Yes, please read the following article by Dr. Peter H. Langsjoen, MD, FACC, Board Certified Internal Medicine and Cardiovascular Disease from Tyler, Texas in which Dr. Langsjoen describes in detail the trouble with statins: http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2008/feb2008_Alleviating-Congestive-Heart-Failure-With-Coenzyme-Q10_01.htm
“All statin drugs block the biosynthesis of both cholesterol and CoQ10, which explains statins’ common side effects of fatigue, muscle pain and muscle weakness, and a worsening of heart failure. When CoQ10 levels are lowered by statin drug therapy, one of the first changes to occur is a weakening of heart muscle function… In 2004, a study published in the American Journal of Cardiology showed that diastolic dysfunction (heart muscle weakness) occurred in 70% of previously normal patients treated with 20 mg a day of Lipitor® for six months. This heart muscle dysfunction was reversible with supplemental CoQ10. Heart failure that develops after years of statin drug therapy can be termed statin cardiomyopathy and may well be playing a role in the epidemic of congestive heart failure in the United States. In an effort to determine the prevalence of adverse effects from using statins, we studied 50 consecutive new patients, all of whom were taking a statin drug at the time of their initial visit. All 50 patients were found to have one or more side effects from statin therapy, so we discontinued their statin drugs and began supplemental CoQ10. Patients were followed for an average of 28 months with the following observations in the prevalence of adverse effects:
• A high prevalence of skeletal muscle pain and weakness at 64% on initial visit was reduced to 6% in follow-up.
• Fatigue decreased from 84% to 16%.
• Shortness of breath went from 58% down to 12%.
• Memory loss was reduced from 8% to 4%.
• Peripheral neuropathy decreased from 10% to 2%.
There were no adverse effects from stopping statin drug therapy with no cases of heart attack or stroke during follow-up. Overall, there was an improvement in heart muscle function on discontinuation of statin therapy and addition of supplemental CoQ10. However, due to powerful propaganda surrounding both cholesterol and statin drug therapy, many patients and physicians are afraid to stop statin therapy…Over the past five years statins have become more potent, are being prescribed in higher doses, and are being used with reckless abandon in the elderly and in patients with "normal" cholesterol levels. We are in the midst of a CHF (Congestive Heart Failure) epidemic in the US with a dramatic increase over the past decade. Are we causing this epidemic through our zealous use of statins? In large part I think the answer is yes. We are now in a position to witness the unfolding of the greatest medical tragedy of all time - never before in history has the medical establishment knowingly (Merck & Co., Inc. has two 1990 patents combining CoQ10 with statins to prevent CoQ10 depletion and attendant side effects) created a life threatening nutrient deficiency in millions of otherwise healthy people, only to then sit back with arrogance and horrific irresponsibility and watch to see what happens…Statins kill people - lots of people - and they wound many, many more. All patients taking statins become depleted in Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), eventually - those patients who start with a relatively low CoQ10 levels (the elderly and patients with heart failure) begin to manifest signs/symptoms of CoQ10 deficiency relatively rapidly - in 6 to 12 months. Younger, healthier people who's only "illness" is the non-illness "hypercholesterolemia" can tolerate statins for several years before getting into trouble with fatigue, muscle weakness and soreness (usually with normal muscle enzyme CPK tests) and most ominously - heart failure…
Oldcarpetcleaner - Definately the statins that slowed you mate. You are so lucky you discovered it when you. At 53 yrs old I went from 120 length swimming sessions to zilch couldn't get out of bed a physical and mental wreck. I had a significant slow down in swimming rate B4 I got so ill. Agitation, memory, bad dreams, sexual urine and number 2s disfunction, difficulty thinking etc etc can all be part of it. In my case after I stopped the medicine I got a whole lot worse B4 I started improving. Look at drmikes profile, he has got some grate helpful links. Check spacedoc dot com most informative. You would probably find "HYDROSOLUABLE" COQ10 2 x 100 mgs a day and magenssium citrate powder 400 mgs a day most helpful. The coq10 NEEDS TO BE the hydrosoluable variety (Tishcon) 100 mgs of this is worth 3 - 600 mgs of the others. Drop us a quick short update on your improvements in a month or 2. Good luck from New Zealand - yeah they poison us down the bottom of the planet as well.
Bobby - Absolutely the 20 mg lipitor could cause your decreased running performance. Thats what these drugs do. Maintaining adequate cholesterol levels is critical to good health. Also the statin drug depletes coQ10 levels inducing further weakness.
Cholesterol bodily functions:
1. Maintains structural integrety to cell walls.
2. Body manufactures testosterone from Cholesterol.
3. Forms the protecting coating on nerves.
4. Forms the bile acids used in digestion.
5. Critical in cognitive function and memory.
6. Sun shines on cholesterol component in skin to form viutamin D.
Bobby
Tyler, Texas
Ronshapiro - Hi,
Although I used to run very regularly I nowadays swim and use weights instead, but in these activities I experienced the kind of deterioration you describe even after taking this drug for a mere 3 weeks. Clearly some people to well on it while for others it's sheer poison. The Dean Ornish type diet may be worth looking at instead if you can live with it.
Ccater - You wrote to medications.com "August 15th
2008
8:42 PM
I have been on lipitor about 4 yrs. I am a runner and keep tract of my times. I have been losing about 4% of my speed each year and have recently had a large amount of muscle fatigue. Today a ran a 940 pace and thought I was not going to make it home. Three years ago my average pace was 805. Could the 20mg dosage be causing this problem?"
I am experiencing the same problem myself right now. 3 weeks ago - I was running @ my peak. Suddenly, my legs feel like lead. I can workout on the ellipital and stationary bike, but when it comes to running outdoors or on the treadmill - I cannot run 1/2 the speed I was before my leg fatigue settled in.
Question: Did your leg muscles ever recover? If so, how long did it take. I recently quit taking my lipitor. I had been on the medicine for probably 8 years.
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