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Video Q&A about Women and Heart Disease Event Date: February 26, 2018 | 4:00pm - 4:30pm CT

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@kab9733

I'd appreciate some perspective in a couple areas:
1. With a growing # of women (breast cancer survivors) living on aromatase inhibitors - thoughts on heart health while living with extremely low estrogen.
2. What do we know about how (dry) sauna impacts the cardiovascular system
3. Statins - are they really worth the side effects?

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Replies to "I'd appreciate some perspective in a couple areas: 1. With a growing # of women (breast..."

Statins can and must be stopped .It is possible to live Statin free life.I do Not take Statins even after heart attack.Lipid profile is fine.BMW and MYSPEED formula is Balanced, Moderate and Worryfree lifestyle .MYSPEED is Meditation,Yoga, Smile and Sleep well, Pranyam is Brething techniques,Exercise , Entertainment and Diet control.Go for fully Indian veg diet .

Sounds wonderful!  I will check out Indian Veg Diet.  Thanks for sharing how you do this.  

Hello @kishanvasekar, and welcome to Connect. Thank you for sharing your insights with the community. Medications are only one way to reduce your risk for heart disease, and I definitely agree that lifestyle modifications and diet can offer long-lasting benefits. However, I have some reservations with regard to your comment about statins, specifically, "Statins can and must be stopped."

There's a lot of confusion on who should be getting statins, but one fact remains clear: The important role that these medications can play in preventing heart attacks and strokes.
Statins work by lowering the amount of cholesterol in blood and/or slowing formation of dangerous fatty plaque. In extremely rare cases, statins can precipitate conditions like muscle damage and diabetes – but numerous studies have established that statins are not the cause, but that these cholesterol-lowering drugs tend to reveal already underlying diabetes in people predisposed to it.

With regard to muscle damage, a recent study has shown that common side-effects of muscle pain, weakens, spasms are not a result of statins themselves, but rather patients’ negative expectations about the medication. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2017/may/02/statin-side-effects-down-to-negative-expectations-not-the-drugs-nocebo
Furthermore, there is not much evidence that statins reduce memory function. In fact, research suggests that statins may help preserve memory by preventing strokes. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4483758/

@kishanvasekar, as you probably know, heart attacks and strokes are the leading cause of death and disability. No one disputes the fact that statins, like so many other drugs, have side effects, but the risk of rare side effects pales in comparison with the very real risk of heart attack or stroke, especially among those with a history of heart disease.
Therefore, in communities such as Connect, where we can share our experiences, and offer support and advice, it is also important to remember that a patient with a disease is not a substitute for a doctor who specializes in that disease. Thank you for understanding, and I look forward to getting to know you better.

@kanaazpereira,
I am glad you posted the above comment..many people are not aware about the cause of high cholesterol level in the blood..It is not the cholesterol in our food/diet, which is responsible for the changes in the blood vessels. NO, we, ourselves, produce too much cholesterol in the liver. Statins slow down the production in the liver. a low-fat diet can help, but can not replace the statins medication..
yoanne