Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a specific amount can cut your chance of having a heart attack or stroke by about 1 in 5—even if you’ve never had heart problems before and are considered low risk.

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Pro

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Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

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Community contributions welcome

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The effects of lowering LDL cholesterol with statin therapy in people at low risk of vascular disease: meta-analysis of individual data from 27 randomised trials

Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis

Human

This big study looked at thousands of people with low risk of heart problems and found that taking statins to lower bad cholesterol by 1 mmol/L cut their chances of heart attacks and strokes by about 21% — just like the claim says.

Contradicting (0)

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Community contributions welcome

No contradicting evidence found

Gold Standard Evidence Needed

According to GRADE and EBM methodology, here is what ideal scientific evidence would look like to definitively prove or disprove this specific claim, ordered from strongest to weakest evidence.

Source Study

The effects of lowering LDL cholesterol with statin therapy in people at low risk of vascular disease: meta-analysis of individual data from 27 randomised trials

Score: 76

DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(12)60367-5

Similar Assertions

If you're at low risk for heart problems and take a statin to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a small amount, you're about 11% less likely to have a heart attack or stroke over the next five years — out of 1000 people like you, roughly 11 fewer will have a major heart or blood vessel problem.

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97%

If you're at low risk for heart attacks or strokes in the next five years, taking a statin to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a small amount can prevent about 11 serious heart or blood vessel problems per 1,000 people over five years — and that help is bigger than the side effects you might get.

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91%

Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a small amount can cut your chance of having a stroke by about a quarter—even if you're not at high risk to begin with—and it works just as well for low-risk people as it does for high-risk ones.

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90%

Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a small amount can cut your chance of having a heart attack by nearly half—even if you're not at high risk for heart disease yet.

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90%

Taking statins can lower your bad cholesterol enough to cut your chance of needing heart surgery or stents by almost half—even if you're not at high risk for heart disease right now.

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88%