The Study
Statins aggravate insulin resistance through reduced blood glucagon-like peptide-1 levels in a microbiota-dependent manner.
This study noticed that people taking statins sometimes had higher blood sugar, and their gut bacteria looked different. It also tried the same thing in mice and found similar results. But it didn't randomly assign people to take statins or not, so we can't say statins definitely caused the higher sugar — it might be something else.
Analysis score
Maximum 72 for a cohort study.
Where the score came from
Statins lower cholesterol but may hurt blood sugar control by changing gut bacteria and bile acids. Adding a natural bile acid called UDCA can fix the blood sugar problem without hurting cholesterol lowering.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 533 / 100
Quality score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes—this suggests a simple supplement (UDCA) could help people on statins avoid developing high blood sugar.
- 2In 30 people taking atorvastatin, gut bacteria (Clostridium) dropped and bile acids changed—blood sugar got worse over 16 weeks.
- 3Giving UDCA to humans fixed the blood sugar issue.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Cell metabolism
Year
2024
Authors
J. She, G. Tuerhongjiang, Manyun Guo, Junhui Liu, X. Hao, Liangan Guo, N. Liu, Wen Xi, Tao Zheng, Bin Du, B. Lou, Xiyu Gao, Xiao Yuan, Yue Yu, Yi Zhang, Fan Gao, Xiaozhen Zhuo, Ying Xiong, Xiang Zhang, Jun Yu, Zuyi Yuan, Yue Wu
Related Content
Claims (4)
Statins do not correct the core metabolic problems, persistent inflammation, or insulin resistance that cause cardiovascular disease.
Taking ursodeoxycholic acid orally reduces glucose intolerance in humans and does not reduce the ability of statins to lower lipids.
In humans taking atorvastatin, the abundance of Clostridium bacteria in feces decreases, bile acid levels in serum and feces change, and glucose intolerance develops over 16 weeks.
In animal models, introducing Clostridium bacteria and giving ursodeoxycholic acid lowers elevated blood sugar caused by statin drugs.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.