Guest guest Posted July 22, 2006 Report Share Posted July 22, 2006 , Very interesting information. I've never had a problem with cholesterol, but I know a number of people who have, and it always surprises me when I hear that an individual is taking " powerful " medicine to lolwer their cholesterol, when Mylanta will do the same thing. For example, a former neighbor of mine with high cholesterol, was given a prescription for a cholesterol lowering drug, and when he went to the pharmacy and found out how much it cost, he said forget it, and didn't get the prescription filled. Instead, he bought Mylanta and took it on a daily basis for the next month. Then he had his cholesterol re-tested, and when he returned to the doctor, the doctor was very pleased that his cholesterol was much lower, and told the man, see, the medicine is working. But, when the man showed the doctor he still had the prescription, and went on to tell him that he had been taking Mylanta, the doctor got very upset. That was 8 years ago, and the man is still doing just fine. Barb E. --- erikmoldwarrior <erikmoldwarrior@...> wrote: > Years before the public had heard anything about > " toxic mold " , (I > know, because I asked) I had this fellow do some > computer work for > me. > The place was a slammer and I wondered how anyone > could work there. > When Doug fell apart and blamed it on lipitor, I > contacted him and > told him all about my experience with mold. > He didn't believe a word of it. As far as he's > concerned, he took > Lipitor and dropped like brick - and that is that. > Statins deplete COQ10 in people who are already > dangerously low and > precipitate the descent into illness. Apparently, > this statin > shifted depletion can be corrected in mold illness, > if caught in > time and supplemented. > However, as I said, he didn't believe anything I > said. > Not being a doctor, I have no particular > credibility. > I just heard recently that he continues to decline, > but is still > firmly convinced that the effect of Lipitor is the > clue that he > needs to follow. > Oh well. At least I tried. > - > > > > LIFE AFTER LIPITOR: Is Pfizer product a quick fix or > dangerous drug? > > Residents experience adverse reactions > > (Article originally found in Tahoe Tribune) > > By Siig, Tahoe World Staff > > At first glance, Tahoe City resident Doug > looks like he is > recovering from a stroke. > > His speech is slurred, he has difficulty walking in > a straight line, > and he can't sign his own name. By afternoon, he is > so fatigued he > has to sit down for the rest of the day. When asked > his age, > says he is 52. His wife Karla, standing > nearby, corrects > him. He is 53. > > Doug has never had a heart attack, and until the > onset of the > symptoms almost three years ago, was an active > skier, biker and > scuba diver. Now he is limited to walks on the > treadmill. Doug > traces his problems to a drug he started taking > almost three years > before his health began deteriorating - Lipitor. Two > other Tahoe > City locals have also experienced negative side > effects from taking > Lipitor or other statins, the name for a family of > cholesterol- > fighting pills. > > While there is no concrete evidence linking Doug's > health problems > to Lipitor, after doing years of research, meeting > with doctors and > talking to other statin sufferers all over the world > online, he and > Karla are convinced of the connection. Pfizer, the > maker of Lipitor, > claims the drug is effective in lowering cholesterol > and has minor > side-effects. But as Doug and others would ask, is > it worth it? > > WONDER DRUG OR DANGEROUS PILL? > > Doug, who has hereditary high cholesterol, was first > prescribed > Mevacor, a statin made by Merck, in 1998. Six months > later, his > doctor had him switch to Lipitor, which comes in > higher doses, and > upped his dosage from 10 to 20 mg. His cholesterol > dropped from 285 > to a low of 160. > > " The doctor was very pleased, " said Doug, " but > meanwhile the > symptoms started. " > > In the fall of 2000, Doug began having restless > sleep patterns. His > twitching and flying arms got so bad that Karla had > to sleep in > another room. One time, Doug even fell out of bed. > The couple didn't > think anything was seriously wrong until a few > months later when > Doug started slurring his words. This was followed > by a loss of > balance and the beginning of what Doug calls the > " statin shuffle " - > a slow, wobbly walk across a room. Next to slide was > Doug's fine > motor skills. It took him five minutes to write four > words, much of > which was illegible. Finally, he tired easily and > his cognitive > memory processing diminished. He had trouble > following books with > complex plots. > > Confounded by Doug's illness, over the next two > years the s > traveled all over California meeting with > neurologists, internists > and acupuncturists. Doug had MRIs, brain scans and > neurofeedback > tests done. Last February, Doug's doctor suggested > he go off Lipitor > to see if the drug was causing his health problems. > After three > weeks, the symptoms persisted, so the doctor put > Doug back on the > pill. Since Doug wasn't exhibiting the most common > side effect, > muscle cramps, and his liver function tests came > back normal, the > physician was doublly sure that Lipitor was not to > blame. > > Finally, last spring, a doctor in Pasadena suggested > Lipitor could > be the culprit. Doug went off the drug in May, and > since then his > symptoms have stopped their downward spiral and his > health has > slowly started to improve. According to Karla, his > mind is sharper, > his balance is better and his speech is more clear > in the mornings, > before he gets tired. But he still has a long way to > go. > > " Before, I was a good father and family person, " > said Doug, who has > two children with Karla. " At this point, I can't do > that much. " > > A former Navy diver and owner of Sierra Tahoe > Computers, a repair > and service business, Doug has had to cut down his > work schedule > because of his fatigue and loss of hand > coordination. He is > considering going on disability, but Karla remains > optimistic. > > " We are hoping he is going to get better. That's our > number one > goal, " she said. " Anger is a waste of energy at this > point. We are > trying to recover and get the word out. " > > DID PFIZER DO ENOUGH STUDIES? > > Since Parke- (later acquired by Pfizer) > developed Lipitor in > 1997, it has become the number one prescribed > cholesterol-lowering > drug in the United States, with more than 18 million > Americans > having been prescribed the drug. New York City-based > Pfizer, the > world's largest pharmaceutical company, derives a > quarter of its $32 > billion in annual sales from Lipitor, according to > an article in > SmartMoney. With sales expected to top $10 billion > this year, > Lipitor is poised to become the largest-selling > pharmaceutical in > history, surpassing Pfizer's other wonder drug, > Viagra. > > Lipitor is proven to lower total cholesterol by 29 > to 45 percent. As > with any prescription, it comes with a list of > possible side > === message truncated === __________________________________________________ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 22, 2006 Report Share Posted July 22, 2006 Barbara, From what I have read, the whole 'cholesterol is dangerous' thing is really blown way out of proportion - the health community is beginning to reevaluate that whole premise... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 23, 2006 Report Share Posted July 23, 2006 " From what I have read, the whole 'cholesterol is dangerous' thing is really blown way out of proportion - the health community is beginning to reevaluate that whole premise... " An excellent book to read about this is The Cholesterol Myths: Exposing the Fallacy that Saturated Fat and Cholesterol Cause Heart Disease by Uffe Ravnskov MD, PhD. -Olif Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 24, 2006 Report Share Posted July 24, 2006 Barb E, Mylanta lowers cholesterol? I wonder how. Since Dr Shoe seems to find cholesterol lowering drugs helpful to toxin illness, I wonder how that would translate with Mylanta. Doesn't Mylanta, just coat the stomach or something? --- Barbara <floridabound03200@...> wrote: > , > > Very interesting information. > > I've never had a problem with cholesterol, but > I know > a number of people who have, and it always > surprises > me when I hear that an individual is taking > " powerful " > medicine to lolwer their cholesterol, when > Mylanta > will do the same thing. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 25, 2006 Report Share Posted July 25, 2006 That is fascinating. One of the problems with drug interactions is that the cause is usually unknown, so removing the drug often solves the problem. I have found a new doctro, and am being tested for CoQ10. I had no idea why. It will be interesting to find out what it is, when it eventually comes back from the lab. Any idea on what normal is for someone like us? Or anyone for that matter. If this has been discussed, forgive me, I have been away. --- In , " erikmoldwarrior " <erikmoldwarrior@...> wrote: > > Years before the public had heard anything about " toxic mold " , (I > know, because I asked) I had this fellow do some computer work for > me. > The place was a slammer and I wondered how anyone could work there. > When Doug fell apart and blamed it on lipitor, I contacted him and > told him all about my experience with mold. > He didn't believe a word of it. As far as he's concerned, he took > Lipitor and dropped like brick - and that is that. > Statins deplete COQ10 in people who are already dangerously low and > precipitate the descent into illness. Apparently, this statin > shifted depletion can be corrected in mold illness, if caught in > time and supplemented. > However, as I said, he didn't believe anything I said. > Not being a doctor, I have no particular credibility. > I just heard recently that he continues to decline, but is still > firmly convinced that the effect of Lipitor is the clue that he > needs to follow. > Oh well. At least I tried. > - Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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