If you are currently receiving statin treatment for your high cholesterol, you may be getting a double benefit. An article published in the Archives of Internal Medicine has shown that people who take these cholesterol-lowering drugs also seem to lower their risk of bone fractures, too.
The study of over 91,000 elderly men showed that those who took statins dropped their bone-fracture risk by 32%. This wasn’t just in comparison to the general population, though; this was compared to people who were taking other types of non-statin drugs for cholesterol. When compared to those individuals, who had no cholesterol therapy at all, the risk dropped by another four points to 36%.
This shows that there is likely something about the statins in particular that is causing the fracture risk to diminish. It may also have something to do with the general cholesterol-lowering effects the drugs have. However, the percentage drop is not significant, so this probably has less of an influence than does a particular substance inside of the statin drug.
At this point, researchers aren’t sure just what it is about the drug that seems to help protect bones, but there does seem to be a correlation present. This isn’t enough evidence to warrant taking statin therapy if you don’t need it for your cholesterol. However, it is something to think about if you are considering some sort of lipid-lowering drugs but haven’t been able to decide whether to go with statin or non-statin medication. Speak to your doctor about the best option might be for you.