A new study suggests that cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins, such as Pfizer’s Lipitor, may negate some of the fitness benefits of exercise.
A story in the New York Times says the study’s findings may present a tricky quandary where preventive health care is concerned. While statins are routinely prescribed for those with high cholesterol and other risk factors for heart disease, exercise is also generally recommended for warding off heart disease and prolonging life span.
Other recent findings have raised health concerns about Lipitor. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has added warnings to the labels of Pfizer’s Lipitor and other types of statins, advising that they may increase blood sugar, and therefore the risk of Type II diabetes.
For the new study, which was published online in The Journal of the American College of Cardiology, researchers studied a group of overweight, sedentary men and women with multiple symptoms of metabolic problems such as wide waistlines, high blood pressure and excess abdominal fat.
Half of the study participants took a form of statin and half did not, and all were tested before and after a supervised 12-week exercise program.
Researchers found that the unmedicated volunteers improved their aerobic fitness by more than 10 percent on average after three months of exercise. But the volunteers taking the statins gained barely 1 percent on average in their fitness.
Patients should consult their doctors before making any changes in their medication. A consultation with a Lipitor lawyer is also important if there are significant injuries.
See the story here:
https://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/22/can-statins-curb-the-benefits-of-exercise/
See more about the study here:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23583255