{"id":122219,"date":"2023-09-06T22:10:12","date_gmt":"2023-09-07T02:10:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=122219"},"modified":"2023-09-06T22:10:12","modified_gmt":"2023-09-07T02:10:12","slug":"from-stubborn-to-statin-a-cholesterol-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thevalleyledger.com\/?p=122219","title":{"rendered":"From Stubborn to Statin: A Cholesterol Journey"},"content":{"rendered":"

Featured Image: Jerry Reimenschneider with his wife, Terese, left, and daughter, Alyssa, in April 2023.<\/em><\/p>\n

By Capital Blue Cross \u2013 \u00a0THINK<\/a>\u00a0(Trusted Health Information, News, and Knowledge) is a community publication of Capital Blue Cross. Our mission is to provide education, resources, and news on the latest health and insurance issues.<\/em><\/b><\/p>\n

I did everything my doctor asked in trying to lower my cholesterol minus medication. But I was lucky enough to learn \u2013 before it was too late \u2013 that sometimes the only thing that can help is the proper prescription drug.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

I bristled at my doctor.<\/p>\n

\u201cA statin?\u201d I huffed. \u201cFor me?\u201d<\/p>\n

It was during a telehealth appointment in 2021, months after a medical exam for my new life insurance policy flagged an elevated overall cholesterol level of 244 and an alarming LDL (or \u201cbad cholesterol\u201d) level of \u2013 gulp \u2013 167. As reference points, anything above 200 overall or 100 LDL is considered high.<\/p>\n

Naturally my doctor was concerned, particularly after we\u2019d worked together the previous few years to control my cholesterol through diet. He told me that since that hadn\u2019t worked, it was time to put me on the statin, a well-known class of drugs that can lower cholesterol by blocking a substance the body uses to produce it.<\/p>\n

I should have felt good about taking a medication I already knew was affordable and wildly effective. Instead, I was frustrated \u2013 and felt like a failure.<\/p>\n

Over the previous four years, I\u2019d dropped more than 30 pounds to get to the healthy weight my doctor wanted; intensified my exercise; and limited my intake of high-LDL culprits like cream and cheese.<\/p>\n

And still I needed these pills? Weren\u2019t statins for people struggling more with their weight, exercise, and diet? Weren\u2019t they for smokers?<\/p>\n

My doctor doubled down.<\/p>\n

\u201cJerry, listen,\u201d he said. \u201cThis could just be something out of your control. I can tell you just by looking at your cholesterol number and your demographics \u2013 your age (55 at the time), your race, your gender \u2013 that your probability of having a heart attack or stroke over the next decade is something like 12%. It shouldn\u2019t be higher than 5%.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s time to take the statin.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sufficiently terrified, I finally took the statin.<\/p>\n

An estimated 12% of Americans, about 94 million, have high cholesterol. Because it comes without noticeable symptoms, it\u2019s particularly perilous if left\u00a0untreated.<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Not Always about Lifestyle<\/b><\/p>\n

Turns out I\u2019m far from alone.<\/p>\n

September is National Cholesterol Education Month, and my story serves as a reminder that while high cholesterol is often the result of the aforementioned lifestyle factors, it can simply be hereditary.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the case for me and tens of millions of Americans, and a reason the American Heart Association (AHA) recommends all adults 20 and over have preventive cholesterol screenings every four to six years.<\/p>\n

An estimated 12% of Americans, about 94 million, have high cholesterol. Because it comes without noticeable symptoms, it\u2019s particularly perilous if left untreated \u2013 excess LDL can build and ultimately block a coronary artery, triggering heart disease and strokes.<\/p>\n

Costly but Containable<\/b><\/p>\n

An AHA-funded report found that high cholesterol would cost the United States $276 billion in lost productivity by 2030. But it need not cost so many lives and so much money, because experts agree on several effective approaches:<\/p>\n