smoore

I'm 55 and in great shape....5'5" 128 lbs but with very high cholesterol that runs in the family. My Dr. has been fighting with me for five years to go on a drug and with my last test still high (and getting higher) I think I may have to give in. Will there be side effects (other than my pocketbook) that might effect my cycling? Anyone have an opinion? Options that work? (not old wives tales)

Thanks,
Steve

chicharron

Steve,
Greetings. I am responding in regard to your query about Lipitor. Relax. I am also in general good condition, 50 yrs. old but have been diagnosed with a tendency toward high chloresterol which also is inherited. I have been taking Lipitor for about two years now, with no ill effects. I believe that your doctor would not have prescribed it for you without knowing your health history. The only known side effect I am aware of would be problems with your liver, however your doctor would monitor your health at first, and then do a follow up blood and urine screen to monitor the effectivness after a few weeks or months. Have no fear, high chlorestrerol if somthing more to be worried about. Good luck.

Roody

There have been many news reports of serious side effects of statin drugs such as Lipitor. Two serious, sometimes fatal side effects are liver damage and rhabdomyolysis, a breakdown of muscle cells. You can get a lot of information by doing a websearch of statin side effects.

If you have high cholesterol and do not take a statin, serious "side effects" could be heart attack and stroke! You decide.

Personally, I take my Lipitor every day since a heart attack in 2000. I have never had any side effects whatsoever.

chicharron

Well, Roody, if there have been "many news reports of serious side effects of statin drugs such as Lipitor", why do you take it? I myself have been taking it for about two years without any ill effects.

Roody

If you actually read my post, I think I mentioned that 1) the effects of not taking it can be severe, and 2) I have had no side effects in four years of use.

skydive69

Statins typically have rather immediate, horrible, side effects (severe muscle pain, etc.) or have none. I have taken Zocor for a couple of years, and my fiance takes Lipitor. My total cholesterol is 129 and my other lipids are amazing. Neither of us have had a hint of side effects other than fantastic blood lipids. My total cholesterol was 201, and that was the lowest I could ever get it with diet - I have always had tons of exercise being an athlete.

tornado

I've taken one or another cholesterol drug for over 10 years and have been taking Lipitor for years. The muscle pain is the only side effect I ever recall being told about.

I have a blood test every 6 months to check liver function and have had no problems.

I never had a problem with any of the meds I took, but I did have a friend who had muscle pain and stopped taking whichever one he was given. He had a very mild heart attack last year at the age of 44. He now takes the meds.

pauncho

I had sky-high cholesterol when I was first tested in 1988. Since then I have been on several different medications, and lipitor is by far the best. It got my cholesterol down to an acceptable level, and the closest I have noticed to side effects has been occasional minor cramping. I did have a real, and immediate, problem with pravachol.

fsor

If using a Statin, keep alcohol intake minimal. There is some thought that the rare instances of liver failure with statins are related to daily, significant, alcohol intake.

jaws

I had bypass surgery 4 years ago and my cardiologist has prescribed several different drugs from the statin family. All have helped reduce my cholesterol - however with lots of different side effects and the worse being when taking Lipitor. These side effects ranged from loss of energy to muscle aches to memory problems (as if it was not bad enought at 60). My most recent prescription is Lescol which had the least amount of side effects - still have some loss of energy.
I work out with several friends that have had all different kinds of cardio problems and in our comparisons find that every one is different in the way that the medications affect their bodies. A lot has to do with other medications being taken along with the statins. If you do take any of the statins, make sure that you have blood work done on a timely basis to check for liver function.
You might want to pick up a copy of a book titled "The New 8-Week Cholesterol Cure" by Robert E. Kowalski - It desribes how he lowered his cholesterol thru diet. I don't think that all his suggestions will work for everyone, it has been a great help for me along with a lot of exercise.

JBBOOKS

I got the muscle aches on Lipitor. My Dr said about 10% of her patients do. They weren't horrible - just weird little aches and pains in places that you never had them.

I am now on Zetia. No adverse affects from it at all - I will soon go in for a re-test to see how it is doing on lowering my Cholesterol. I was at around 250 and the Lipitor got me to 200.

WhistlerPat

Hi Steve

I'm 55 was on lipitor for 3 or 4 years, I bike a lot. My muscles always hurt a bit and felt tired and achey. Several years ago shifted to simvastatin, and have had no problems. never had a problem with biking, rode across Canada in 31 hauling camping gear days and I was using lipitor. Hope tis helps

Faust

A few years back I took one of the cholesterol drugs for a few weeks. Don't remember which one. My appetite slowly dropped to zero, and when I reported this to my doctor I was told to stop taking the drug. A scan of my liver showed that some small damage spots were developing. Off the drug, my appetite returned, my liver seemed happy, and my cholesterol dropped to within acceptable limits (180) within a few months.

Since then I have watched my diet, lost a few pounds, continue to cycle, stretch, meditate, and laugh as often as possible!

aluckyfiji

i dont know if i am suppost to be responding in the 50+ or not seeing that i am only 26... but i have been on lipitor for 6yr and provocal (sp?) for 2yr previously (i was 18yr when i started taking med. for my cholesterol (background history, I am 5'6" never weighed between 140-155, don't eat red meat, fast food unless traveling, mt. biked for six years now road for 2 yr., competative soccer until 1997) I have noticed ZERO side effects, but I still have my blood tested once a year the check my liver and cholesterol

If you are interested in side effect go to you local library and check-out the PDR (Physicians Desk Reference) it will have all the drug interactions and side effects, or you can check out https://www.pdrhealth.com/drug_info/r.../lip1230.shtml
Or ask your local pharmacist

DnvrFox

Thanks for responding. Personally, I welcome pertinent responses to shared concerns by any-aged person to the 50+ forum. The 50+ forum was purposely not "cloistered" so that all could participate, but the emphasis was to be on the successes and challenges of those 50+, as yours was.

Roody

I agree that the PDR is a good resource. I just keep in mind that the drug information in the PDR is supplied by the pharmaceutical companies. Also, the PDR doesn't provide tips on taking the drugs or drug comparisons. Finally, it uses a lot of medical jargon and provides technical details that I don't begin to understand. A good additional resource is medical web sites like WebMD, Mayo Clinic and many others. Of course, your doctor, nurse and pharmacist can provide good data too.

aluckyfiji

The information that is in the PDR is provided by the pharmaceutical company, but it is the side effects they recorded in the II and III phase clinical trials, so they should be accurate (though if you been keeping up with the news you have seen vioxx (merek) had some side effects that were not seen in the clinical trails, due the shortness of time of clinic trial)
But I second WebMD, I personally have never looked at the Mayo Clinics, but I am going to check them out sometime soon just

bjlaw

I don't want to alarm you but I have two friends that are in their mid 50"s and they have had sever side effects from Lipitor. I play golf with them and neither can walk 18 holes anymore. One even has trouble walking up a short flight of stairs. The deterioratin in their legs stopped when they got off of Lipitor. But much of the damage is irreversible.

I'm lucky not to have a need for these drugs. I would do everything possible to change diet etc. before going the drug route. However obviously heart damage is a terrible alternative. You have to make the call.

jazzy_cyclist

My cholesterol has always been borderline to high, although I have no other heart disease risk factors. When I was out of work and was able to exercise a lot, lost 20 pounds, it dropped to acceptable levels (190). But I wasn't able to maintain that, so I have been taking Lipitor for a year or two now. Always hard to tell if aches and pains are normal or not, but so far no ill effects as fars as I can tell.

I take one *every other day* which is supposed to provide the same benefit, but a slightly lower risk.

Roody

Interesting...Where did you hear about this?

smoore

Guys, you've been a great help. Is it possible that I would get muscle aches and a overall run down feeling after only taking this for five days? I have these feelings right now but at this time of year it could just be "the bug" or maybe after reading your posts I'm talking myself into something...but I don't think so.

Thanks again, I'm gonna go ride and see how I feel.

Steve

Roody

Anything is possible with these potent drugs. Maybe you should call your doc if it keeps up.

chicharron

cranky,are'nt we?

chicharron

Like some one else had said before here, it you can lower your chloresterol through diet and exersize,so much the better. If not, then experiment with meds, and by all means get freqent checkups and test with your doctor. I try to watch my diet, exersize, watch my weight, etc, ect, bicycle,etc, however I still take Lipitor with no ill effect.Cheers.

EastOfMidnight

I started taking Lipitor about 2 wks. ago. Feel a little weaker than normal, and joints are aching a bit. Then yesterday, I cramped up 3 times in a 30 mile ride (I ave. 50/week). The third was so bad that I had to terminate the ride. I'm off Lipitor as of this AM (as per the recommendation of my wife, a Nurse Practitioner) and will be in touch with the Doc. ASAP. I took Zocor in the past with little side effects and will probably go back to that, because diet and exercise don't seem to be sufficient. I'm not too crazy about statins, though.