New Study Suggests Up to 40% Fewer People May Need Statins
It’s estimated that about 26% of US adults aged 40 are taking statins to manage their cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Now a new
study suggests that up to 40% fewer people may need statin drugs, potentially changing the way heart patients are treated.
In 2023, the American Heart Association introduced the Predicting Risk of Cardiovascular Disease Events (PREVENT) equations to better estimate the 10-year risk of developing atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), improving on the 2013 model by using newer data. Plus, PREVENT removed racial factors and included additional variables such as kidney function and statin use to enhance accuracy.
To evaluate the impact of these new equations,
researchers conducted a cross-sectional study using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2017 to early 2020. They compared the participants’ cardiovascular disease risk based on both the PCEs and PREVENT equations to see how they influenced recommendations for statin therapy.
On average, the 10-year ASCVD risk was lower when calculated using the PREVENT equations compared to the PCEs. This trend was consistent across various demographic groups, including age, sex, and race. Most importantly, they noted that the PREVENT equations resulted in a significant reduction in the number of adults eligible for primary prevention statin therapy compared to the PCEs, reducing that number by up to 40%.
More Physical Activity (Less TV) May Promote Healthier Aging
Although the benefits of sleep and activity are well-established, the impact of light physical activity and sleep on healthy aging has not been extensively studied until recently. Now, a
recent study has found that swapping physical activity for sedentary behaviors like TV watching can make a measurable impact on how well people age.
To study this, researchers looked at data from the Nurses’ Health Study. They focused on participants aged 50 or older without major chronic diseases in 1992. Their goal was to investigate how sedentary behaviors like TV watching and prolonged sitting and light physical activity such as standing or walking independently influence healthy aging.
Among the 45,176 participants, only 8.6% achieved healthy aging, defined as reaching at least age 70 while maintaining freedom from chronic diseases and preserving physical, mental, and cognitive health.
They found that each additional two hours of daily TV watching decreased the odds of healthy aging by 12%, yet the same amount of light physical activity boosted the likelihood of healthy aging by 6%. Plus, for those who routinely slept seven or fewer hours per night, the
researchers noted that substituting just one hour of television time with more sleep or moderate-to-vigorous activity improved the odds of healthy aging.
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