Statins

Many times I wondered why the "statins" are discussed in the Cardiovacular chapter in the Aust. Med.Handbook (AMH).
In developed countries like Aust, people enjoy life perhaps a little too much - good food, excellent TV, DVDs we tend to overeat, we tend to sit and watch more shows and hence we perform less and less physical excercise. Food and TV shows (and of course Sex) are the main source to relieve boredom - IMHO.

The questions are -
- when should one start to take a statin?
- can fish oil be used in place of a statin?
- what are the healthy range for cholesterol?
- how often should cholesterol levels be measured?

The most prominent side effect of statins is myopathy. Many times patients complained to me that they felt weak in the legs.
Apart from atorvastatin and rosuvastatin, statins are preferred to be taken once at night.
Pravastatin has less drug interactions.

New research suggests that higher doses of statin may not always work to prevent diseases of the coronary artery
(http://www.dnaindia.com/health/report_higher-statin-doses-may-not-prevent-coronary-artery-disease_1336742)