Statins and Risk of Incident Diabetes

Do certain cholesterol drugs called statins cause diabetes? If so, it may become harder to treat high cholesterol with statins in someone who already has a risk of developing diabetes in the first place. Studies show that statins may increase the risk of incident diabetes.

What Are Statins?

Statins are a certain type of medication used to treat high blood cholesterol levels. This type of drug actually slows the production of cholesterol in the liver to lower cholesterol levels in the body. High cholesterol can lead to plaque build up in the arteries and heart disease or stroke, One of the benefits of statins is that they have been shown to actually decrease plaque that has already built up in the arteries for some users.

Diabetes

Diabetes is diagnosed by high blood sugar levels. There are several types of diabetes depending on if there is enough insulin being produced or if the insulin produced is effective at controlling glucose levels in the blood. Diabetes can cause other health risks such as heart attack, high blood pressure, eye problems and kidney disease, to name just a few.

What Causes Diabetes?

Diabetes has a heredity basis that can be triggered by certain environmental and lifestyle choices. Eating sugary foods does not cause diabetes, but can raise blood sugar levels. If you have diabetes follow your doctor's recommended diet.

Studies on Statins and Diabetes

There was conflicting data in several studies that showed statins caused the development of incident diabetes. A meta-analysis study published in The Lancet showed a 9% increase in the development of diabetes for statin users than for those not using the cholesterol-lowering drug. Researchers don't know why or how statin users could develop diabetes, but the event seemed more prevalent in older study participants.

Should You Avoid Statins if You Have Diabetes?

The benefits of statins, including the potential for removal of already present plaque, generally outweighs the risk of developing diabetes through their use. The 9% increase is very low and not necessarily enough to determine causation, especially since so many other factors can lead to the development of diabetes. Talk with your doctor about statins and your risk of incident diabetes.

REFERENCES:

Statins; MedicineNet.com; http://www.medicinenet.com/statins/article.htm

Naveed Sattar, et al.; Statins and risk of incident diabetes; The Lancet; http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(09)61965-6/abstract