Current Statin Users Consume More Calories and Weigh More than Predecessors

The present day statin users are consuming an unhealthy diet with more calories and fat and weigh more compared to their predecessors a decade ago.

Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles, say that present day statin (a cholestrol lowering drug) users are consuming more calories and fat than those who used statins 10 years earlier.

The conclusion is based on the analysis of the data retrieved from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Using this data they compared the intake of fat and calories among statin users and non users in 1999-2000 and 2009-2010.

A noticeable increase in Body Mass Index was also noticed in people who took this drug.  "We believe that this is the first major study to show that people on statins eat more calories and fat than people on those medications did a decade earlier," said the study's primary investigator, Takehiro Sugiyama. "Statins are used by about one-sixth of adults. We may need to reemphasize the importance of dietary modification for those who are taking these medications, now that obesity and diabetes are important problems in society."

The researchers noticed that there was a 9.6 percent rise in the intake of calorie among statin users over that decade and the consumption of fat increased by 14.4 percent. But they did not identify any remarkable change in the intake of calorie and fat among the non-statin users during the 10 year period.

According to the data analyzed, the statin users consumed nearly 180 kilogram calorie less each day and 9 gram of fat less daily than non users at the start of the study years. But down the decade the researchers found no difference in the intake of calories between users and non users . The researchers assume that the difference could be due to the fact that statin users now don't feel the urgency to lower their caloric and fat consumption or lose weight in a similar manner as statin users did 10 years ago. 

"Regardless of the mechanism, there are problems, because eating more fat, especially saturated fat, will lead to higher cholesterol levels, which will undermine the effect of statins and may lead to unnecessary cost of medications," Sugiyama said. "Being overweight also increases the risk of diabetes and hypertension, which also are risk factors for heart disease and stroke. Ethical considerations should be included in the discussion. We believe that when physicians prescribe statins, the goal is to decrease patients' cardiovascular risks that cannot be achieved without medications, not to empower them to put butter on steaks."

The paper is published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.