I couldn't believe my eyes when I read in the New York Times that the American Academy of Pediatrics has issued new guidelines to "aggressively screen and medicate for high cholesterol in children" and that they plan on administering cholesterol-lowering drugs - called statins - to kids as young as age 8! Age 8!

 

WHAT'S NEXT - PUTTING YOUR NEWBORN ON ANTI-DEPRESSANTS BECAUSE IT DOESN'T SMILE ENOUGH?

 

But before we go into that, let me remind you of the simple facts about cholesterol...

 

DON'T ACCUSE CHOLESTEROL OF A CRIME IT DIDN'T COMMIT!

 

Back in April, I posted an article that dispelled the myths surrounding cholesterol, so allow me to reiterate a few things: in Ayurveda, there is no "bad" and "good" cholesterol - it's all good. High cholesterol is the informant, a warning sign, that something else is not right in your body - it's not the criminal. Don't blame the cholesterol!

Use of cholesterol-lowering drugs (statins, also known as Lipitor - Pfizer; Pravachol - Bristol Myers Squibb; and Lescol - Novartis) rose by 156% (from 15.8 million people to 29.7 million people) between 2000 and 2005. Spending on these drugs catapulted from $7.7 billion to $19.7 billion, and prescriptions rose from about 90 million to nearly 174 million during that same time period.

In 2004, the U.S. government's National Cholesterol Education Program advised those at risk for heart disease to reduce their LDL ("bad") cholesterol to the ridiculously low levels of less than 100 (or even 70). If you want to meet these dangerously low targets, you would generally have to take multiple statins in combination.

Big business shouldn't dictate how we treat ourselves or especially our children, and statins are not the solution to the "problem" with cholesterol. Don't just take my word for it. Dr. Joseph Mercola, D.O., has spoken out against the use of statins for children. "I do not find it particularly heartening that these drugs are as safe for children as they are for adults, considering that they are highly dangerous for adults to begin with," Dr. Mercola notes in his article "Now They Want to Treat Kids with Statins."

Dr. Mercola also lists some of the known dangers of statins ("Crestor and Other Statins: Are They Really Worth the Risk?") including: "potential increase in liver enzymes...muscle aches, weakness, immune system suppression, an increase in cancer risk, and a serious degenerative muscle tissue condition called rhabdomyolysis."

 

OUR CHILDREN DESERVE BETTER!

Hugs (and Ayurveda) Not Drugs: Treat childhood weight and obesity disorders the SAFE and NON-TOXIC way...

Choose the RIGHT Labels: Vata, Pitta, or Kapha - NOT "Fat" or "Lazy"...

Copyright Dr. Helen Mary Thomas

Get A Free Copy: Download a copy of Dr. Helen's 120 page book, Effortless Ayurvedic Living and receive a free subscription to her free ezine at http://EffortlessAyurvedicLiving.com

Dr. Helen Mary Thomas, Ayurvedic Practitioner: Since 1987 Dr. Helen Thomas, D.C., has treated thousands of patients, both in America and India, on a daily basis, with the 3,000 year old science of Ayurvedic medicine.

Dr. Helen has pored over the ancient texts and worked side-by-side with Ayurveda practitioners. Over a decade ago, Dr. Helen started paying Ayurvedic doctors from India to come and work with her in her clinic.

Her knowledge comes from hands on experience, not theory given to her in school.

Many of her patients have been moved to tears after receiving an Ayurvedic assessment from Dr. Helen. Ayurveda helped them understand themselves, their needs and their stresses, more profoundly than ever before.

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