Statins and Dementia: Better keep your brain cells alive!
Several million patients in Germany are treated with statins. In 2004, the consumption of lipid-lowering drugs throughout Germany amounted to around 856 million defined daily doses (DDD). In 2011 the amount increased to: 1.718 million DDD. With the target to lower cholesterol levels, this doubtful strategy is still being mistakenly promoted to reduce heart disease risk. As a side effect, doctors and patients are accepting a possible cognitive decline. These are the results of a study published in 2018 in the journal Frontiers in Neurology, which looked into the relationship between cholesterol and cognitive function [1]. While cholesterol is still largely vilified, and statin use still heavily promoted, the study found that having lower levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol is linked to a higher risk of dementia.