:: Jun-Jul 2008

Welcome to our Monthly Online Newsletter!

View all Treatment articles in our Treatment Report . The most recent articles are listed on top (not in alphabetical order). Click on the Topic on our home page and then the subtopic - Treatment Report. Stay updated on drugs and their side effects, and various other treatments, including exercise, nutrition, and supplements.

Highlighted Articles

Cholesterol Drugs for 8-Year-Olds “We were appalled when we first heard that the American Academy of Pediatrics has recommended that some children as young as 8 be given drugs to reduce their cholesterol levels — and that they could end up taking these drugs for the rest of their lives. After reading the academy’s report, we are now more dismayed about what this recommendation says about children’s health. … The recommendation has provoked furious debate among pediatricians, as Tara Parker-Pope reported in Science Times on Tuesday. Critics complain that there is no evidence that giving statins to children will prevent heart attacks later in life and that there is no data on the potential side effects of taking the drugs for decades. … The academy did urge that good diets and physical exercise be tried first, but the drug recommendation has attracted the most attention. We do fear that it will open the way for drug companies to bombard anxious parents with ads promoting these and other products and increase the number of parents insisting on prescriptions for their children.”

Niacin's Role In Maintaining Good Cholesterol “These results indicate niacin hinders the liver from removing HDL from the blood, thus maintaining high plasma HDL levels. Importantly, niacin does not affect another major pathway known as "Reverse Cholesterol Transport." Therefore, it maintains HDL levels while still allowing the removal of other cholesterol types, explaining why niacin is especially beneficial.”

Clinical Guidelines

ADA - Disorders of Lipid Metabolism Evidence Based Nutrition Practice Guideline (2006)

MOH - Lipids Clinical Practice Guideline (2006)

NGC GUIDELINE SYNTHESIS - LIPID SCREENING IN THE PRIMARY PREVENTION OF CORONARY HEART DISEASE AND ATHEROSCLEROTIC CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE IN ADULTS

NGC - Lipid management in adults. (2005)

NGC - Lipids. (2006)

NGC - Managing abnormal blood lipids. A collaborative approach. (2005)

NGC - Screening and management of hyperlipidemia. (2005)

NGC - Screening for lipid disorders in adults: U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendation statement. (2008)

NGC - Treatment of hyperlipidaemia: aims and selection. (2004)

Internet Sites

Featured site

NIH - Medical Encyclopedia Cholesterol

Laboratory Testing Information Request Form: Ask a Question about your lab test results

NIH - Cholesterol

NIH - Cholesterol Counts for Everyone

NIH - Cholesterol test

NIH - High Blood Cholesterol

NIH - High Blood Cholesterol: What You Need To Know

NIH - Medical Encyclopedia High blood cholesterol and triglycerides

NIH - Medical Encyclopedia Triglyceride level

NIH - Senior Health High Blood Cholesterol

NIH - What Is Cholesterol?

Triglycerides: Common Questions

Triglycerides: Why do they matter?

What are High Blood Cholesterol and Triglycerides?

Related Topics - Highlighted Articles

Diet - Health

Fitness - Exercise

In this newsletter:

Diagnosis, Imaging, and Screening
General Information
Risk Factors
Risk Reduction

	Diagnosis, Imaging, and Screening

	General Information
Cholesterol Drugs Recommended for Some 8-Year-Olds Cholesterol lowering, sudden cardiac death and mortality (Scandinavian Cardiovascular Journal 2008) “In fact, careful analysis of the available data, including randomised trials, indicates that, contrary to a widespread opinion, cholesterol lowering does not appear to be a very effective way of reducing cardiac and overall mortality in the general population.”

	Risk Factors

	Risk Reduction
Fish Oil, Red Yeast Rice Cut Cholesterol “Supplements of fish oil and red yeast rice, coupled with lifestyle changes in diet and exercise habits, can reduce cholesterol as much as standard cholesterol-lowering medications known as statins, according to a new study. But the study's lead author, David J. Becker, MD, a cardiologist at Chestnut Hill Hospital and the University of Pennsylvania Health System, emphasizes that the alternative approach is not for everyone. "Statins remain the primary and best treatment for people with high cholesterol, especially if you have known coronary disease," Becker tells WebMD. The study evaluated only people with high cholesterol who did not yet have coronary disease. "If you are someone dead set against taking a statin, this may be an attractive option, assuming you are willing to make the lifestyle changes," Becker says.“ HDL cholesterol: How to boost your 'good' cholesterol Lower Your Cholesterol (Without Drugs)