THE 16 BILLION DOLLAR LIE behind today’s cholesterol crisis What the big drug companies refuse to tell you…and why their popular prescription medications offer only 1/3 of the total protection you really need!

“Everyday you’re being told that lower and lower cholesterol is the key to avoiding heart problems.  Everyday you’re being warned about the importance of eating healthy and getting enough exercise.  But are you aware of the untold risks of today’s popular cholesterol-lowering drugs…and the serious limitations of most natural nutritional formulas?

Nothing makes me angrier than when I read about what the big drug companies are doing – simply to sell more of their expensive prescription cholesterol medications.

                                              The drug industry’s

                                   16 billion dollar lie 

            Make no mistake, statin-type cholesterol drugs are already among the biggest-selling pharmaceuticals ever.  In the U.S. alone, it’s a huge $16 billion market – with more than 20 million people now taking these kinds of medications to lower their risk of heart attacks, strokes and vascular disease.

            But something has gone terribly wrong.

            The big drug companies have fooled the public into believing that by simply taking one of their expensive little pills every day, their cholesterol worries are over. 

The truth is, we are all being misled.

            You see, no matter how well they seem to work, statin-type drugs only provide 1/3 of the complete protection against high cholesterol levels that people really need. 

            Did your doctor tell you this?  I doubt it.  After all, most physicians tend to depend more on what the drug reps who visit their offices tell them, rather than what the medical journals say.

            However, knowing this single critical piece of information can be a real life saver when you’re trying to meet the American Heart Association’s latest cholesterol target numbers– which are dramatically lower (and for most people, harder to reach) than ever before.

            That’s why you need to know…

                                  …why today’s new cholesterol

                               goals pose special dangers

                                      to anyone over 50.

            Until recently, having your “bad” LDL cholesterol anywhere under 130 was considered optimal.  But now, the American Heart Association has lowered the recommended LDL level to 70 or less – especially for people who have risk factors for cardiovascular disease.  That’s a huge drop, of course, but new research has shown that the dramatically increased benefits for your health are worth it.

            But what’s the healthiest way to get your LDL cholesterol down to this level?

Equally important, how do you do get there without taking higher and higher doses of today’s expensive statin-type cholesterol drugs – and exposing yourself to a variety of dangerous side effects?

Let me explain…

When today’s popular statin-type anti-cholesterol drugs were developed more than 20 years ago, the initial testing was done on younger people under the age of 50 on a healthy low fat diet.  For this younger group, a daily dose of just 10 to 20 milligrams was enough to lower bad LDL cholesterol by 20-24% and increase “good” HDL cholesterol by 5%. 

At this relatively mild dosage level, dangerous side effects – like muscle soreness and weakness, muscle wasting and muscle cramps, extreme fatigue and  problems with heart, liver and memory – were minimal, affecting less than 1 percent of population.

The problem is, in the “real world”, most people with high cholesterol concerns are over the age of 50 and don’t particularly want to be on a special low fat diet. 

For these more mature patients, physicians found that a 10 to 20 milligram dose simply wasn’t much help. So the doctors started prescribing higher doses of 30 to 80 milligrams a day.

The result was a skyrocketing increase in adverse side effects – the deadliest of which is an approximately 300% increase in congestive heart failure, according to statistics compiled by leading cardiac health researcher Dr. Peter Langsjoen.

                                          “Doctor, what can I do?”

            Clearly, with these kinds of risks now linked to large doses of prescription statin medications, anyone who is concerned about their cholesterol has some important decisions to make.

            For example…

You could make some basic lifestyle changes like diet and exercise – and hope for the best.

You could try using a lower dose of a statin-type drug, along with a nutritional supplement that lowers cholesterol even more. 

Or, you could look for an all-natural way to lower your cholesterol far enough so that you can avoid statin drugs entirely.

My point is simply this, you could do a lot of things.  But what’s the BEST option?  What is it that will make the biggest difference?

You’ll learn the answer in a moment.  But first, let me tell you about…

                         …the #1 mistake people make

                        in dealing with high cholesterol.

Fortunately, people now realize that high cholesterol – specifically a high level of “bad” LDL cholesterol – can lead to serious health issues.  But what many of us still don’t understand is that the biggest single mistake you can make in addressing the problem is to rely on just one therapeutic approach. 

Please don’t misunderstand me.  I’m not down-playing the importance of eating a healthier diet and getting more exercise. 

It’s just that the kind of single-minded focus I’m talking about involves either a prescription drug from your physician or some kind of nutritional supplement from the health food store. 

But either way, you lose. 

That’s because, biochemically speaking, there are not one…not two…but a total of THREE different ways to lower your totalcholesterol level:

1.     Inhibit the production of cholesterol in the liver. 

This is how prescription cholesterol-lowering drugs work.  Unfortunately, many people – especially older people or anyone with on-going problems– need extra help.  And the higher the dosage, the higher your risk for such side effects as severe liver damage, abdominal and muscle pain, nausea, fatigue, and heart failure!  However, scientists now know that certain natural compounds can inhibit the production of cholesterol safely, without side effects.  

2.     Block the absorption of cholesterol into the body. 

This is the way many specially-targeted nutritional supplements work.  They block the absorption of cholesterol from the food you eat, as well as that which is removed from the blood by the liver and is emptied into the small intestine.  Yet, until recently, most of these natural supplements were long on claims and short on results.  Since they didn’t work as effectively or as consistently as the manufacturer claimed, many of these products lead to nothing more than frustration and disappointment.    

3.     Put excess cholesterol to work where it’s needed. 

Cholesterol is deadly when it becomes oxidized and builds up in your arteries, causing blockages.  But did you know that elsewhere in the body, cholesterol is essential to help your body produce energy, build and repair cells, manufacture hormones, even make vitamin D!  The good news is, new research has proven that certain nutrients can literally pull excess cholesterol out of the blood and put it to work where it will do the most good.