Statins and cateracts

Wool Pulled Over Eyes

It’s a beautiful scam.

Maybe “scam” is a little too strong. So let’s call it a “sales strategy” that smells more than a little bit fishy.

Operators are standing by

I was watching a talk show recently when someone on the panel mentioned in passing that a certain brand of cholesterol-lowering statin drug may cause liver and muscle problems.

Bing! A light went on. This wasn’t momentous, but it represented something important. Five years ago you would not have been likely to hear those words spoken on network television. But maybe, just maybe, the tide is actually turning and the general public is starting to wise up that there are potential dangers in lowering cholesterol with drugs.

In the meantime, the all-out marketing blitz for statins roars along. And a brand new sales pitch is now available. That’s right, folks! You get a drug that lowers cholesterol, and for the same price, we’ll also throw in protection against cataracts!

Stamped with the Seal of Approval

The 6/21/06 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) included a new statin study from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

STUDY ABSTRACT

Nearly 1,300 subjects at risk of developing nuclear cataracts were followed for five years
Among subjects who used statin drugs, incidence of cataracts was 12.2 percent
Among subjects who didn’t use statins, incidence of cataracts was 17.2 percent
In their conclusion, the authors write that statin use “appears to be associated with lower risk of nuclear cataract”

Obviously, we’ll need to see much more research – especially double blind, placebo-controlled studies – before anyone can honestly claim that statin use is linked to cataract protection. And here are two excellent reasons why (as noted in an Associated Press article about the study):

Other researchers point out that a variety of factors could explain the results of the study
Some cholesterol-lowering drugs never made it to market because of concerns that they actually contributed to cataract development

But these caveats are academic. Why? Because drug salespeople can now simply tell doctors that a JAMA study found cataract protection in statin use. (You can be certain they won’t be dwelling on any of the caveats.) And doctors, in turn, will pass that information on to their patients.

More than half of all Americans age 65 or older have some evidence of cataract development, according to the National Eye Institute. And people over the age of 65 make up the prime market of statin users. For drug companies, it’s a match (and a sales pitch) made in heaven. And the fact that the evidence is razor thin presents no problem at all because the study was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, which automatically equals a rock solid Seal of Approval for many doctors and patients.

Consider the source

The JAMA study notes that statin drugs are reputed to have antioxidant properties that may account for their protective effect against cataracts.

Oh PLEASE! As if anyone who’s informed about antioxidants would choose “protection” from statins over true antioxidant sources that have virtually zero risk of side effects – a claim no statin drug manufacturer can make.

Corn, kiwi, red seedless grapes, orange-colored peppers, spinach, celery, Brussels sprouts, scallions, broccoli, and squash all contain a powerful antioxidant called xanthophylls which has been shown to help protect against cataract development.

You can find out more about this antioxidant’s role in vision health – and how vitamins C and E also contribute to protection against cataracts – in the e-Alert “Chasing the Clouds Away” (12/20/04) at this link:
http://www.hsionline.com/ealerts/ea200412/ea20041220.html

Sources:
“Statin Use and Incident Nuclear Cataract” Journal of the American Medical Association, Vol. 295, No. 23, 6/21/06, jama.ama-assn.org
“Statins May Reduce Risk of Cataracts” Lindsey Tanner, The Associated Press, 6/20/06, ap.org