Is it true that women in their 40s must take cholesterol medication?
Is it true
that women in their 40s must take cholesterol medication?
For a long time, high
cholesterol has been accused of being the mastermind of the emergence of
various dangerous diseases, such as heart disease and stroke. In fact, as we
get older, the risk of high cholesterol is increasing. Well, there is a mention
that to prevent rising cholesterol levels, women in their 40s are advised to
take cholesterol medication. Is it true?
There are many efforts made to prevent high cholesterol. If
the cholesterol level is already high, you must control it immediately so as
not to cause various complications that can endanger the life.
Recommendation for cholesterol medication for over 40 years
of age
The high incidence of heart disease and stroke is a
complication of high cholesterol. This makes many experts in the medical world
try to find ways to reduce the prevalence of these two deadly diseases.
One of the most recently-published and quite controversial
ways is the latest guide from the US Preventive
Service Task Force (USPSTF). The guidelines suggest that one of the most
well-known cholesterol drugs called statins is given to all people over the age
of 40. This gift does not consider whether these people have a history of heart
disease or not.
If people aged 40-75 years are found to have one or more
risk factors for heart disease such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure
(hypertension), diabetes, or have a smoking habit even though they do not have
symptoms or history of heart disease, then this age group is advised to consume
statin.
This recommendation is not without reason. This is because
people who have no symptoms and a history of heart disease still have at least
a 10 percent risk of developing heart
disease and stroke. Especially if these people already have one or several risk
factors as mentioned above.
In line with the American College of Cardiology (ACC) and
the American Heart of Association (AHA), the new guide from the USPSTF also
advises doctors and patients to focus on the 'bad' low-density lipoprotein
(LDL) - a trigger for heart disease and stroke. However, the difference is, ACC
and AHA have a more aggressive view by suggesting people who have a 7.5-10
percent risk to continue taking statin drugs.
Get to know statins further
Statins are the most popular type of cholesterol-lowering
drug because its main function is that it can reduce levels of bad cholesterol
in the body. This is why statins are considered to have superior effects
compared to other cholesterol drugs
because they have the greatest protective benefits against the occurrence of
cardiovascular disease.
Not only that, there are also studies that state that
statins can reduce the speed of aging in human DNA. Nevertheless, this still
requires further research.
According to a study conducted in 2017 of 39 million people
in the United States aged 40 years and over who took statins, it was reported
that statins were quite safe and side effects were only experienced by a small
percentage.
The side effects of statins include muscle pain, liver
problems and digestion, and an increase in blood sugar levels. Traced, groups
of people who are susceptible to statin side effects are women, those over 65
years old, and people who consume too much alcohol.
Come back again, listen to what the doctor says
Although there are already three guidelines that suggest the
use of aggressive statins, the patient's treatment decision is left back to
each doctor. There are doctors who agree with the treatment, but there are also
those who think that this is too extreme and does not need to be followed 100
percent.
In addition to statin therapy, you should not forget there
are other ways to keep cholesterol stable and avoid the threat of
cardiovascular disease which is also known to be effective, namely by applying
a healthy lifestyle. Consuming statins without paying attention to diet and not
exercising regularly will certainly not make you feel the benefits of these
drugs optimally, even the body can experience side effects from using statins.
Another way that is also good for preventing or lowering
high cholesterol is by consuming a stanol ester plant, a natural substance that
has been clinically tested to reduce cholesterol. Plant stanol ester is
actually still 'one family' with cholesterol, so it has the same chemical
composition.
However, if cholesterol comes from animal origin, then the
stanol plant comes from the vegetable.
Because it has a similar shape, this ester stanol plant can compete with
cholesterol indigestion, so it can
prevent the absorption of cholesterol into the body.
The National Cholesterol Education Program recommends PSE
consumption as much as possible
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