@elio, Eliott, I have never heard of many of the supplements you are listing and I hope you are having a Dr or someone who is really in the know be recommending these to you? Although I am a firm believer in different kinds of Natural supplements, the wrong combination of them can be as deadly as any pharma type drug interactions. It sounds like you are getting a hold of your diet and as a 25 year old I would highly encourage you to start some kind of exercise program. It is always tough to start, but once you pencil the time into your schedule and stick to it, you will begin to look forward to it (maybe not always). Again, I'm not sure why you came up with the strong reasons against statins, but I would say that the vast majority in the medical community is clear that they really make a difference and I would say for me that all my numbers have vastly improved since I began taking them.

One other thing I will mention and this is something that I would like to hear some feedback on from the others in our Connect Group is about if anyone uses C-pap?
I had a sleep study done in a hospital setting over 8 yrs. ago and was totally surprised in what I found out.
I have used C-pap ever since and it has made a huge difference in my health, especially in how I feel throughout the day. I always thought that C-pap was only for heavy people that snored a lot, but I am not anywhere near heavy (180 lbs. & 5'10") and according to my wife I occasionally was snoring (but she was able to sleep through it). When one has apnea as a result of snoring this triggers our system to send a message that "Hey dude, you stopped breathing 20 seconds ago, better start soon". I know this sounds like a Woody Allen movie, but believe me when I say this is worth considering. Essentially the message sent is a shot of Adrenalin into our system that creates Cortisol which is a major cause of plaque and other bad stuff that over time will really effect our health.
They now have very reliable home sleep tests that can be done by yourself and is far easier than the hospital stay and a whole lot less expensive. I highly recommend that you consider this for yourselves!
Enjoy your weekend!

I did exercise for many years and did not help me to reduce my cholesterol<br>at all. Your liver makes most of the cholestrol only 10% from food. You<br>need to visit Naturopathic doctor most of them can prescribe medication too<br>they are doctors. That what I did 12 years ago and I purchase supplement<br>from them and it does helps and much better the prescriptions. The<br>prescription Statin they contain yest red rice too plus some chemicals that<br>hurts your muscles and joins. Also like to let you know I was on<br>Pantoprazole (PPI) for 18 years was helping at same time was helping my<br>body to make cancer tumors and I am now in big trouble living with<br>Gastrinoma cancer. All prescription got very bad side effect but natural<br>stuff very few of them. I could not stop to take PPI pills because when you<br>start it can not stop taking it.All prescriptions works agains your immune<br>system that is why your body fight you.<br>That is my 2cents.<br><br>

Greetings each and everyone! I just thought it would be a good idea to finally share with the astonishing results of my latest blood test checkup. After a 2 month and 1 week period of time, LDL or "bad" cholesterol dropped from 250.6 to 148.8. Total Cholesterol has plummeted by 98 points - from 334 to 236. Also, my HDL or "good" cholesterol went down from 42 to 39. However, I got a slight raise in my triglycerides levels which went up from 207 to 241. I can only attribute this improvement to a bunch of supplements I've been taking for the past 2 months, red yeast rice is among them. Although my lipid profile is still considered slightly high, I will continue what I've started and I won't give up. Thank you for all your support and encouragement 🙂

@elio- Great to hear about your success with your recent lipid numbers! Way to go! I know when I first went on a statin drug that my numbers changed a bunch in only a month that I wondered how that could have made that much difference in such a short amount of time. My understanding is that regular exercise will help your triglycerides improve so consider working in some daily walks or find a gym that is nearby. It takes a solid month or so to create a good habit, but once you do you will never regret it and you will feel so much better about yourself. Keep up the good work!

@elio- I finally watched a you tube that I have been wanting to watch by a Cardiologist who has been involved in medicine for over 35 years and unlike many cardiologists, takes a bit of a different slant on statins. His name is Dr. Sinatra and the name of the you tube is "Are statins the culprit". I have since read up more on this Dr. and he seems very respected. He does sell supplements that always leaves me feeling like is this is "stick", but I do respect him and do take some supplements that are similar as what he sells from another source. I think anyone who is already taking statins or may be in the process of having them prescribed to them should watch this to be more informed. Although it is just over an hour long it is well worth it! Here is a little bit of the interview.

Dr. Sinatra's Take on Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs

Some researchers like Dr. Seneff do not believe it is appropriate for anyone to take statins, and while Dr. Sinatra believes that a statin drug may be suitable for some people, he agrees that the risks are very high, and side effects grossly under-reported.

"I feel that the best indication for a statin drug is a middle-aged male with coronary heart disease and a low HDL," he says. "To me this person has the greatest to gain and the least to lose. The problem I have with cholesterol lowering drugs is that they have horrific side effects… If you treat a woman in her 30's just for "high cholesterol," and treating numbers, I think we're doing a disservice… We really shouldn't use them in elderly people. We shouldn't use them in young people, or in women. I have been very disappointed as a clinical cardiologist in the efficacy of statins in women, even with advanced coronary disease."

I would reserve statin drugs for, again, documented cases of coronary artery disease and again particularly middle-aged males. If I did have cholesterol problems or inflammatory cholesterol sub-types, I would try to treat the patient with weight loss and exercise and nutraceutical support first, before I would consider a statin drug."

I use supplements from naturopathic and it works fine. Also you can buy it from vitamin shop as yest red rise capsules.<br><br>