High Cholesterol? What works better than statins without negative side effects?

Magnesium!!! The following artical explains how and why magnesium is better than statin drugs. Note: there are several different forms of magnesium and only three are bioavailable, ie., useful to the body. Of the three, citrate in its ionic form has proven to be the most effective. For more information, contact Dr. Holly at holly [at] choicesunlimited [dot] ca

Magnesium is proven to be an effective and natural ‘statin’

 By Dr. Gerry Bohemier DC

 A recent study published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition, Vol. 23, No. 5, 501S-505S (2004) shows clearly that Magnesium can do all the things that statin drugs do without any side effects. (1)

 Statin Drugs such as Lipitor, Zocor, Pravachol, Lescol, Mevacor, and Crestor are the most prescribed drugs for the 30 –40 million people with ‘high cholesterol’, a heart “Risk Factor”. They act by preventing or ‘inhibiting’ the formation HMG-CoA Reductase which in turn prevents the formation of the enzyme ‘Mevalonic Acid’, which the body depends on for the manufacturing or ‘synthesis’ of cholesterol, needed for hormone production, cell membrane integrity & maintenance, tissue repair, brain and nerve cell protection etc. etc. This drug action can prevent up to 60% of this normal body function, all in the name of artificially reducing “cholesterol”. The action of statin drugs comes with the risk of serious side effects.

 Some of the most common ill effects are muscle damage, nerve damage, impaired memory, inhibits production of CoQ10 a necessary enzyme for energy and heart health, increase risk of dying of cancer, risk of kidney and liver damage, suppress your immune response and system, terrible mood swings, etc. etc.

 Heart disease is not a cholesterol problem! Any more then grey hair is the cause of aging. The presence of one does not cause the other. The last ten years of science has shown this to be true.

 Magnesium ‘regulates’ the production of cholesterol (a vital cell molecule) as opposed to the statin drugs, which ‘prevents’ or ‘inhibits’ the production of cholesterol. Magnesium regulates ‘Calcium channel Blockers’ as opposed to drugs, inhibiting the same. Thus magnesium regulates blood pressure and prevents ‘fibrillation’ better then drugs and without the serious side effects. Magnesium is also a controlling factor in inflammation.

Chronic inflammatory diseases are all magnesium deficient conditions.

 Drug effects decrease contraction strength and decreases nerve impulses and cause ‘heart blocks’ (not good!) Magnesium regulates and thus prevents all of these factors.

 In conclusion the article rated optimum magnesium levels as a viable equivalent to ‘statin’ and ‘calcium cannel blocking’ drugs, but with no side effects with magnesium.

 Other studies have shown that Magnesium is much more deficient in our diets than calcium and in fact helps to regulate hundreds of body functions. Magnesium is a much better choice than harmful drugs.

 Ionic nano particle (very small) sized forms of magnesium are the most efficiently absorbed of all the magnesium supplements. Consult your local health food store for the right stuff!

(1) Journal of the American College of Nutrition, Vol. 23, No. 5, 501S-505S (2004)

Published by the American College of Nutrition

Comparison of Mechanism and Functional Effects of Magnesium and Statin Pharmaceuticals

Andrea Rosanoff, PhD and Mildred S. Seelig, MD

Independent Scholar, Pohoa, Hawaii (A.R.)

Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn (M.S.)

Address reprint requests to: Mildred S. Seelig, MD, Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY 11203. E-mail: mgseelig [at] comcast [dot] net

Since Mg2+-ATP is the controlling factor for the rate-limiting enzyme in the cholesterol biosynthesis sequence that is targeted by the statin pharmaceutical drugs, comparison of the effects of Mg2+ on lipoproteins with those of the statin drugs is warranted. Formation of cholesterol in blood, as well as of cholesterol required in hormone synthesis, and membrane maintenance, is achieved in a series of enzymatic reactions that convert HMG-CoA to cholesterol. The rate-limiting reaction of this pathway is the enzymatic conversion of HMG CoA to mevalonate via HMG CoA. The statins and Mg inhibit that enzyme. Large trials have consistently shown that statins, taken by subjects with high LDL-cholesterol (LDL-C) values, lower its blood levels 35 to 65%. They also reduce the incidence of heart attacks, angina and other nonfatal cardiac events, as well as cardiac, stroke, and total mortality. These effects of statins derive less from their lowering of LDL-C than from their reduction of mevalonate formation which improves endothelial function, inhibits proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cells and macrophages, promotes plaque stabilization and regression, and reduces inflammation, Mg has effects that parallel those of statins. For example, the enzyme that deactivates HMG-CoA Reductase requires Mg, making Mg a Reductase controller rather than inhibitor. Mg is also necessary for the activity of lecithin cholesterol acyl transferase (LCAT), which lowers LDL-C and triglyceride levels and raises HDL-C levels. Desaturase is another Mg-dependent enzyme involved in lipid metabolism which statins do not directly affect. Desaturase catalyzes the first step in conversion of essential fatty acids (omega-3 linoleic acid and omega-6 linolenic acid) into prostaglandins, important in cardiovascular and overall health. Mg at optimal cellular concentration is well accepted as a natural calcium channel blocker. More recent work shows that Mg also acts as a statin.

Key words: enzymes: HMG-CoA Reductase, LCAT, desaturase, statins, magnesium, dyslipidemia: LDL-C, HDL-C, TG, heart, arteries