Cholesterol Doesn't Cause Heart Disease (Part 2)

by Heidi Stevenson

4 August 2009

Connection Between Statins and LDL

Statins do lower LDL levels, though it has never been documented that lowering LDL levels or eating low-cholesterol foods protect against heart disease.

How Statins Lower Blood LDL

Statins interfere with one of the steps in the liver's cholesterol-synthesizing process. The logic generally used for why LDL levels drop is the following:⁽¹⁾

• Statins reduce the synthesis of cholesterol. (That's true.)
• By reducing cholesterol synthesis, VLDL production is reduced. (Also true.)
• VLDLs shrink, producing IDLs, which also shrink, producing LDLs. (Right on target.)
• Reducing the number of VLDLs decreases the level of LDLs. (Whoops! There's no truth to this.)

There is no connection between the level of VLDL and LDL. What determines the number of LDLs in the blood is LDL receptors in the body. The more receptors, the more LDL is pulled from the blood.

VLDLs are synthesized in the liver. If there isn't enough cholesterol in the liver, then the cholesterol in LDLs is required. Statins reduce cholesterol synthesis in the liver. Blood LDL levels are determined by receptors for them. To acquire LDLs, the liver increases its LDL receptors, thus pulling more LDL out of the blood. That results in lowered blood LDL levels. It's fairly simple:

• Statins interfere with the liver's cholesterol production.
• Therefore, the cholesterol required for VLDL production is inadequate.
• So, the liver produces LDL receptors to grab LDLs for their cholesterol.
• The liver's LDL receptors pull LDL molecules from the bloodstream.
• LDL levels in the blood drop.

Statins interfere with the liver's ability to make cholesterol. The liver, knowing better than the drug manufacturers, puts forth extra effort to make up for the lost cholesterol. Since it's being prevented from making it normally, it draws LDL from the blood, since LDL contains the cholesterol that's needed to create VLDL.

As discussed in "Statins Do Not Extend Life, Not Even By A Day,"⁽²⁾ statins don't extend life, except in cases of men—not women—with pre-existing heart disease, and even then, not by much. While it's true that they do lower LDL, the fact is that reducing LDL does not reduce heart disease.

Statins do have a small effect in preventing heart disease in men with existing coronary disease, what could account for it?

Blood Clotting

Dr. Kendrick states that the only consistent factors that predict heart disease are those that increase blood clotting activity. He states that he found no evidence to contradict that fact, though the low-cholesterol hypothesis is full of contradictions, and constantly revised in attempts to explain the contradictions away. Well, it isn't total cholesterol that matters, it's LDL. Well, no, it's really the ratio of LDL to HDL. Hmm...maybe not, maybe it's oxidized LDL. Then again...

What drugs, foods, and supplements are known to help heart disease by limiting blood coagulation? Here's a small list⁽³⁾:

• ACE-inhibitors: Most powerful known anti-coagulant known.
• Alcohol: Stops platelets from sticking together.
• Aspirin: Prevents blood platelets from sticking together.
• Clopidogrel: Similar to aspirin, stops platelets from sticking together.
• Statins: Anti-coagulation function.
• Streptokinase: Enzyme that acts as an anti-coagulant.
• Tissue plasminogen activator: Blood factor that dissolves clots.
• Warfarin: Rat poison used in smaller doses to prevent clotting.

Didja see statins in that list? Yep, that's right. Statins act by preventing blood coagulation. How this is helpful in preventing heart attacks is not fully understood. It does appear to be associated with damage in blood vessels, which is related to the harmful effects of environmental factors and stress. We'll cover that another day. The important issue here is that there is a small benefit to be derived from statins in preventing death from heart attacks. This benefit is gained at the cost of significant risks to health, including memory loss, and muscle and liver damage. In otherwise healthy people, these risks are so great that they counterbalance any benefits to be gained from statins.

Blood Thinners Other Than Statins

There are natural blood thinners that may produce results as good as statins. Of course, tests haven't been done on them. The testing process is very costly and generally controlled by Big Pharma. It would not benefit the drug industry to do such tests.

With the awareness that not all information is in yet, but with some faith that natural methods are generally superior to artificial pharmaceutical ones, and that natural methods are nearly always far safer, here are some suggestions that are readily available:

• Enzymes:
• Streptokinase (enzyme)
• Serrapeptase (enzyme)
• Nattokinase (enzyme)
• Trypsin (enzyme)
• Urokinase (enzyme)
• Bromelain (from pineapples)
• Papain (from papayas)
• Moderate alcohol drinking
• Capsaicin (hot peppers)
• Arginine
• Taurine
• Lycopene
• Chondroitin
• Omega 3 fats
• Vitamins:
• Folic acid
• Vitamin A
• Nicotinic acid form of Vitamin B3
• Vitamin B6
• Vitamin C
• Vitamin E

My personal recommendation is to try the enzymes with the -kinase suffix. These function by preventing excess levels of blood factors that prevent the dissolution of blood clots. Thus, they do not interfere with the forming of clots, which could be dangerous. There are many other things not on this list. The ones selected are those that are most readily available. Because it's possible to overdose on some supplements and vitamins, caution is urged. (The B vitamins are an important example. Too little can cause severe neurological disorders, but too much can result in the same problems.)

Instead of the headlong push into taking statins, treating them as if they were no riskier than taking a placebo, it's time to put a halt to the insanity. Before taking an artificial drug, why not try something natural? See if it works. You—and your doctor—may have a pleasant surprise from the results.

Lp(a)—low density lipoprotein (a): Lp(a)—pronounced El pee little a—is a variation of LDL.