[Warning] Popular Meds up Diabetes Risk 51%
By
Natalie Moore
Posted March 18, 2017
Dear Living Well Daily Reader,
The warnings on cholesterol-lowering statins are enough to make you break out in a cold sweat.
They can come with serious side effects and complications, like muscle pain, fatigue and even memory problems.
Statins are like a bull in your body’s delicate china shop.
And if you’re a woman in her 70s, there’s yet another reason to avoid them — Type 2 diabetes.
You see, Australian scientists recently found that statins make diabetes risk skyrocket in some older women.
For the study, they examined the medical records of over 8,000 Australian women who were diabetes-free prior to being prescribed statins.
But trust me — they didn’t stay diabetes-free.
Women 75 or older who took statins increased their chances of developing diabetes by 33 percent.
Even worse, women on the highest doses saw an unbelievable 51 percent boost in their risk of getting diabetes.
Other research links statins with diabetes risk. In fact, a Finnish study of almost 9,000 men shows similar results — statins increased risk of Type 2 diabetes by nearly 50 percent.
Researchers believe statins increase your risk so greatly because they interfere with the way your body processes sugar and can increase your insulin resistance.
But that’s the bad news.
The good news is there are easy ways to control your cholesterol without statins.
Getting more fruits, veggies and fatty fish (or omega-3 fish oil supplements) in your diet and increasing your activity levels is a great way to start.
Supplements like red yeast rice have also been shown to lower cholesterol.
And these changes just might just help you fight off diabetes too.
Live well,
Natalie Moore
Managing editor, Living Well Daily
Ed. Note: Please send your feedback: feedback@livingwelldaily.com – and click here to like us on Facebook.
Written By Natalie Moore
Natalie Moore is a dedicated health researcher with a passion for finding healthy, natural, and science-based solutions. After a decade of direct healthcare experience in western and natural medicine, she was involved in public health research before joining Living Well Daily.
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