{"id":5247,"date":"2026-02-07T12:18:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-07T11:18:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.infotekps.com\/index.php\/2026\/02\/07\/statin-side-effect-risks-may-be-much-lower-than-you-think\/"},"modified":"2026-02-07T12:18:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-07T11:18:15","slug":"statin-side-effect-risks-may-be-much-lower-than-you-think","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.infotekps.com\/index.php\/2026\/02\/07\/statin-side-effect-risks-may-be-much-lower-than-you-think\/","title":{"rendered":"Statin Side Effect Risks May Be Much Lower Than You Think"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>Taken by millions of people across the United States, statin medications can reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke by lowering cholesterol levels. But an untold number of people who could also benefit from these drugs avoid them due to concerns about potentially serious side effects.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629e38fb7de-0a81-4444-86a6-44c5d5f36c34e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e597629116b73fc-40c6-4ea5-8aee-19a6e7ee5932 But statins don\u2019t cause nearly any of the more than 60 possible side effects listed on the drug packaging, according to a new research review.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e59762965c52ba9-cdb4-4280-aa68-2e96a70cd679 \u201cI think this underscores what most cardiologists and physicians in general have known for a long time \u2014 that statins are incredibly safe, \u201d says Omar K. Siddiqi, MD , an assistant professor of cardiovascular medicine and director of the Cardiovascular Medicine Fellowship Program at Boston Medical Center in Massachusetts. \u201cThe Achilles heel for a long time has been this idea that statins are associated with a lot of side effects,\u201d Dr. Siddiqi says. \u201cI\u2019ve even heard people say things like they\u2019re the most dangerous medications you can take, and that\u2019s been kind of popularized in the general media. So it\u2019s become a bit of folklore that statins are associated with muscle breakdown and muscle pain \u2014 and that\u2019s what people tend to know about,\u201d he says. Only a Handful of Statin Side Effects Are Supported by Evidence, Analysis Finds Researchers looked at data from more than 150,000 participants among 23 large randomized clinical trials that either analyzed the effects of statins compared with a placebo, or the effects of stronger-acting statins compared with milder ones. They found a similar frequency of side effect reports between participants taking statins and those taking placebos. That means people really are experiencing these symptoms \u2014 but it\u2019s not the statins that are causing them. For instance, cognitive or memory issues were reported in about 0.2 percent of participants taking either statins or placebo \u2014 meaning the increased incidence was equal for both people on statins and those on placebos, says lead study author Christina Reith, PhD , an associate professor at the University of Oxford\u2019s Oxford Population Health in England. \u201cIn this latest work, we found no significant excess risk with statins for almost all the conditions listed in package leaflets as potential side effects,\u201d says Dr. Reith. The study found no excess risk from statin use for any of the following: Depression Sleep disturbance Erectile dysfunction Weight gain Nausea Fatigue Headache There was a small increase (around 1 percent) in the risk of muscle pain for people taking statins, \u201cwhich largely occurred in the first year of treatment,\u201d Reith says.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e59762928307670-4faf-4dfd-abab-f4be33b5b233 The review also found a 0.1 percent increased risk of having liver blood test abnormalities, but not an increase in reports of actual liver disease \u2014 which suggests that these cases didn\u2019t lead to more serious liver issues. Siddiqi notes that while liver-related and other risks are rarely seen in practice, it\u2019s still possible for them to occur. \u201cI think the side effects that you can detect on a lab test are almost unheard of, but they do happen and there are real people who have them \u2014 so we\u2019re not undermining that.\u201d Statins side effects that the analysis did find to be supported by evidence include urinary changes and tissue swelling. Research Has Some Limitations The current research comes with some limitations, including the possibility of longer-term side effects linked to statins that surpass the duration of the clinical trials studied, which were up to seven years. \u201cAdverse events experienced were also based on reports, rather than full biochemical-laboratory data, which may underestimate the liver blood test abnormalities, although the lack of serious liver outcomes suggests this is unlikely to change the main conclusions,\u201d Reith adds. Tips for Using Statins There are multiple different types of statins to select from if one doesn\u2019t work well for a particular patient, with higher-intensity statins cutting cholesterol levels more than lower-intensity versions.e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e59762928307670-4faf-4dfd-abab-f4be33b5b233 \u201cIf somebody develops symptoms from one statin, that does not mean that that&#8217;s a drug class effect, so they may actually tolerate other statins better,\u201d Siddiqi says. To safely take statins , experts recommend:e60dc2a1-f33c-4a05-9b50-8e3e8e59762928307670-4faf-4dfd-abab-f4be33b5b233 Take statins exactly as prescribed by your healthcare provider. Don\u2019t suddenly stop taking statins on your own. Talk to a healthcare provider about any symptoms or concerns. Above all, the researchers hope the findings highlight that the known benefits of statins outweigh any risks. \u201cStatins are potentially lifesaving treatments for people who are at risk from heart attack and stroke , which remains a leading cause of death and disability worldwide,\u201d Reith says. \u201cStatin drug packaging and other sources of health information for statins should be reviewed to enable doctors and patients to make informed decisions.\u201d<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Taken by millions of people across the United States, statin medications can reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke &hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[25],"class_list":["post-5247","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-health","tag-health"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.0 - 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