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Cholesterol Drugs Over The Counter
By: James Brunton
The trend, nowadays, seems to be for more prescription medicines to be available over-the-counter in pharmacies. Sometimes you
can even get them from your supermarket shelves.
A few years ago the UK lead the way in allowing one of the cholesterol-lowering statin group of drugs to be sold through
pharmacies. Admittedly the strength was half the lowest strength you could get from your doctor. But, it was a start.
Since then, drug companies have been keen to see more of the statin drugs available this way. Presumably it helps their profit
profile.
Before you rush out to get your supply, and save visiting your doctor, I have a few thoughts for you to consider.
Statins are usually prescribed for life. They aren’t like antibiotics where a course of tablets for a week or two is enough. Once you
start down the road of cholesterol lowering by medication the idea is to keep going. If you stop taking them, your cholesterol just
goes up again.
An important part of the plan is that you have regular checks on your liver function, since statins could damage your liver. That
would be worse than high cholesterol.
These drugs also cause birth defects, so shouldn’t be taken by women who are pregnant or who might become pregnant.
Then, who is going to check that the medicine is having the desired effect? You’ll need to test your blood to see whether your
cholesterol is going down as planned. Regular blood tests are an added expense if you are doing it yourself.
It your cholesterol hasn’t dropped, what do you do? Double the dose, triple it? Not necessarily a logical or safe option.
You must be aware of potential side effects and what to do if you get any. Check out the patient information leaflet in the package to
see the range of adverse effects and side effects. It won’t help just to give up taking the drug without considering the options on
your cholesterol and your well-being.
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