I don't do scans. I do not take meds because side effects usually worse than the issue. .

Statins definitely lower cholesterol (which have a very real positive role in our bodies), but the higher cholesterol is a symptom, not a cause. It's like taking high-powered pain killers to alleviate the pain of a brain tumor. That does nothing to cure the tumor. Lifestyle changes are the only treatment that works. And the side effects are terrific: normal body weight, more energy, healthy blood sugar levels -- and on and on. You might notice that the statin drug ads seemed to have stopped emphasizing curative powers, only that they reduce cholesterol. I am aware that many physicians disagree with me. My own cardiologist, who had been in practice for 50 years when he retired last year, insisted that 98% of his patients have no side effects with statins. My personal experience is that everyone I know that has been on them has stopped taking them because of side effects. Whoops! I take that back. The husband of a friend is now on 20 prescriptions, the result of adding prescriptions to treat the side effects of other prescriptions. The cholesterol hypothesis (yes, it's just a theory) is only one of several theories about the causes of heart disease. Not surprisingly, stress and emotions are far and away more responsible for heart disease than something as simple as cholesterol levels. For a summary of the many studies that refute the importance of cholesterol levels in heart disease, I have two main sources. The scientific community that titles itself "The International Network of Cholesterol Skeptics," whose members are among the world's most distinguished and respected medical practitioners and researchers, have published several books. I read LIPID LUNACY: DIET DELUSIONS AND WHAT REALLY CAUSES HEART DISEASE. An easier read is THE GREAT CHOLESTEROL MYTH by Bowden and Sinatra. Bowden's degrees and research are primarily dietary and some of his essays are featured on the Mayo Clinic website. Sinatra was a cardiologist, as well as a licensed psychotherapist. Statins are a very powerful antioxidant, which accounts for their theoretical use in heart disease, which is an inflammatory disease. They definitely do an exemplary job as an anti-inflammatory. But at what cost? Since sugar is such a powerful inflammatory substance, it's no surprise that reducing sugar intake is helpful. Some 40 years ago, I quit smoking by eating chocolate chip cookies instead. After a year of carrying all the weight I gained during that time, I went on a diet that began with a water fast, then a balanced diet that allowed no alcohol or sugar. I not only dropped all the weight, but I felt like a million dollars. It was years later that I learned of sugar's inflammatory effect. That's when I realized why the arthritis that had begun in my finger joints completely disappeared during my diet.