Grapefruit juice is the only food or drink that has a direct interaction with statins. Statins do not directly interact with any food but people taking statins should moderate their intake of saturated fats to help lower their LDL cholesterol and overall risk of cardiovascular disease.
Eat like a Mediterranean.
Adding or subtracting a single food from your diet won't make much of a dent in your cholesterol, but adopting an overall healthy eating plan might, says Michos, who usually recommends a Mediterranean-style diet rich in fruits and vegetables, whole grains, olive oil, nuts, beans, and fish.
You can take atorvastatin with or without food, but taking it after food may help if it makes you feel sick. Swallow atorvastatin tablets whole with a drink of water.
Background: Adenosine receptor activation is essential for mediating the IS-limiting effects of statins. Caffeine is a nonspecific adenosine receptor blocker, and thus drinking CC may block the myocardial protective effects of statins.
Joseph A. Hill, M.D., Ph. D. The controversy in the United Kingdom started in 2013 when the British Medical Journal (BMJ) claimed statins were being overprescribed to people with low risk of heart disease, and that the drugs' side effects were worse than previously thought.
A Statin Alternative Lowers Heart Attack Risk by 23 Percent, Drug Trial Shows. People who can't or won't take statin medications to reduce LDL cholesterol may want to talk to their doctor about bempedoic acid (Nexletol).
Because many factors are involved, your cholesterol numbers may be considered normal and yet you may still be found to be at an elevated risk for heart problems. As a result, statin medications are now used to lower the risk of heart disease and heart events in most anyone found to be at high risk.
So, why do people take statins at night? Many statins work more effectively when they are taken at night. This is because the enzyme which makes the cholesterol is more active at night. Also, the half-life, or the amount of time it takes for half the dose to leave your body, of some statins is short.
There is no manufacturer's warning against drinking while on any statin medication, including Lipitor, which is recommended to be taken after dinner or at bedtime.
Cautions and interactions. Statins shouldn't be taken if you have severe liver disease or blood tests suggest that your liver may not be working properly. This is because statins can affect your liver, and this is more likely to cause serious problems if you already have a severely damaged liver.
If you've made lifestyle changes through diet and exercise that have lowered your cholesterol levels, you may not need to continue taking a statin. These changes can help reduce your risk of heart attack, stroke, or blocked arteries while allowing you to take one less medication.
A systematic review found that short-acting statins worked best when people took them in the evening. The people who took these statins toward the end of the day had lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels compared with the people who took them in the morning.
5. The cholesterol-lowering action of alternate-day statins is as effective as daily dosing in many individuals.
Statins: Don't eat grapefruit
Grapefruit and other citrus fruits can interfere with how your body metabolizes these medications.
There are no known interactions between statin medications and multivitamin and mineral supplements.
These are most commonly found in fruits, vegetables including figs, avocados, nuts, oilseeds, oils such as rice bran, olive oil and whole grains including barley, oats, , wholewheat.
Red wine can be the alcohol of choice as it possesses antioxidant properties. Studies reveal that moderate consumption of red wines can not only lower cholesterol levels but help prevent certain heart diseases.
In moderate amounts, red wine is commonly linked to healthy cholesterol levels. But drinking more hard liquor, beer, mixed drinks, and excess red wine has a negative impact on your cholesterol levels.
Statin use is associated with increased calorie intake and consequent weight gain. It is speculated that statin‐dependent improvements in lipid profile may undermine the perceived need to follow lipid‐lowering and other dietary recommendations leading consequently to increased calorie intake.
Researchers have found that fat-soluble statins — which include Lipitor, Mevacor, Vytorin and Zocor — are more likely to cause insomnia or nightmares because they can more easily penetrate cell membranes and make their way across the blood-brain barrier, which protects the brain from chemicals in the blood.
If you take them in the morning, they may not be as effective in the evening. So it's recommended to take these statins in the evening: Fluvastatin (IR capsules)
Which cholesterol-lowering drug is the safest? Overall, statins are safe as a class of drugs. Serious adverse events are very rare. Among the individual medications, studies have shown that simvastatin (Zocor®) and pravastatin (Pravachol®) seem to be safer and better tolerated than the other statins.
While statins are highly effective and safe for most people, they have been linked to muscle pain, digestive problems and mental fuzziness in some people. Rarely, they may cause liver damage.