The war on cholesterol just turned deadly

I’ve never been one to buy into the cholesterol myth…ever.

In fact, for most people, I don’t think cholesterol matters one bit. Which is why I’ve long been a vocal opponent against the stringent guidelines that the powers-that-be enforce by overprescribing statin medications to virtually anything that breathes.

I’ve been a doctor long enough to see past the numbers. I’ve watched “normal” total cholesterol thresholds drop from 300… to 200… and now to 150—along with corresponding drops in thresholds for LDL (the supposedly “unhealthy” cholesterol).

I became particularly alarmed when that number bottomed out to 70. Because despite what conventional wisdom might have you believe, this is one department where lower isn’t always better.

In fact, it can kill you. And if you want proof, just keep reading…

Low LDL more than doubles stroke risk

A recent study of nearly 100,000 people has delivered even more evidence linking low LDL cholesterol to intracranial cerebral hemorrhage (ICH)—in other words, a stroke caused by bleeding in your brain.

I’m not talking about a weak association, either. The results of this study showed that subjects with an LDL below 70 mg/dL had 65 percent higher odds of ICH over the course of nine years.

And subjects with an LDL below 50? Well, they had a 169 percent higher risk compared to subjects with LDL levels between 70 and 99.

So you know what that means? All of those statin medications can more than double your stroke risk, depending on how low your doc likes to keep your LDL cholesterol levels.

And get this: There was no significant difference in risk among those with LDL levels between 70 to 99 and those with LDL levels of 100 or greater. So these rock bottom targets aren’t just dangerous… they’re downright unnecessary.

Of course, there were also those subjects with cholesterol levels that were naturally that low to begin with. And the truly scary part here is that results didn’t change significantly when researchers excluded patients taking statins or blood thinners.

Which means that low LDL cholesterol is an independent health risk, regardless of how you get there.

Even “bad” cholesterol does a body good

If this isn’t a wake-up call to cardiologists and patients alike, it should be.

Tell me this: How many times has your doctor told you that you need to have your LDL below 70, or even at 70? More times than you can count, I’m sure. So now you know: Listening to that advice will seriously increase your risk for a bleed into your brain—the worst type of stroke you can suffer.

At this point, you may be wondering, why? Well, the simple answer is that, despite mainstream medicine’s efforts to vilify it, our bodies need cholesterol to function. Not least of all because it plays a key role in the structural formation of your cell membranes—it literally holds your body together.

Lower it too much, and of course you’re inviting serious problems. That’s just plain common sense.

Yet the naysayers are already screeching about this latest outcome—insisting that LDL-lowering drugs are still necessary to prevent more common ischemic strokes. (That is, the kind resulting from blockages.)

The truth of the matter is that the medical community should be taking this opportunity to loosen cholesterol targets in favor of a bigger picture where heart health is concerned. But sadly, that’s not going to happen. It seems they would rather let patients bleed to death while Big Pharma continues collecting their money.

It’s truly shameful. Because ischemic stroke prevention isn’t rocket science. Simply eat right, exercise, and keep your blood pressure under control. And if you need help getting started, check out my most recent book: The A-List Diet. Or, you can take a statin medication and sign up for lethal brain bleeds… among other nasty consequences.

I don’t know about you, but I know which choice I’m making, every single time.

P.S. I’ve recently developed an all-natural plan to prevent and reverse America’s biggest killers—high blood pressure, heart attack, and stroke. It’s called the Ultimate Heart-Protection Protocol. Click here to learn more about this innovative online learning tool, or to get started today!

Source:

“Low LDL Means Higher Hemorrhagic Stroke Risk.” Medscape Medical News, 07/08/2019. (medscape.com/viewarticle/915359)