Statins are the drugs of choice for treating high cholesterol and preventing or reducing heart disease, but the long list of side effects marked on the packaging of statins can be a turn-off for those who might benefit from them. Now, a new study published in The Lancet found that only a few of those side effects are really a risk. Researchers discovered only 4 of the 66 undesirable outcomes attributed to statins were significant. The study found no evidence of memory loss, dementia, depression, sleep disturbance, erectile dysfunction, weight gain, nausea, fatigue or headaches from taking the medication. The study looked at the effects of five drugs − Atorvastatin, Fluvastatin, Pravastatin, Rosuvastatin and Simvastatin − and used data from 19 large-scale clinical trials with 123,940 participants, often comparing the statin versus a placebo. "Our study provides reassurance that, for most people, the risk of side effects is greatly outweighed by the benefits of statins,” said Christina Reith, Associate Professor at Oxford Population Health and lead author of the study.
