Cholesterol lowering drugs such as statins can accelerate hair loss. Even drug companies admit to this. The possible reasons for this are: the lowering of hormones; the disruption of biological functions such as metabolism; and the distortion of the precise relationship of cholesterol and human hair needed for growth. Hormones are vital for hair growth and loss, so any imbalance can have far reaching consequences.
Why is it that as you age, there is an inverse relationship between cholesterol and steroid hormones? As you age, cholesterol levels increase and many hormones decrease. Can there be a connection between this inverse relationship?
The answer is yes, because as many steroid hormones decrease with age, your liver makes more cholesterol – the precursor to these hormones. One approach, instead of using statin drugs to lower cholesterol, is to use natural supplements to lower cholesterol, and use natural hormone replacement therapy to balance hormone levels. Natural hormone replacement therapy is determined by blood or saliva testing to customize the formula for your specific hormone needs. As hormone levels normalize, cholesterol levels will decrease correspondingly.
Cholesterol is needed for the synthesis of all steroid hormones such as: gluco-corticoids (blood sugar regulation), mineral-corticoids (mineral balance and blood pressure regulation), sex hormones (many functions), and is a precursor to pregnenolone – the master hormone. DHEA is another hormone vital for cardiovascular health
Cholesterol is vital for proper nerve functioning, brain functioning, shoring up damaged tissues, supporting cells, and maintaining good immunity. Statin drugs decrease the liver’s ability to make cholesterol by inhibiting HMG CoA reductase – the enzyme needed to also make CoQ10, which is needed to keep your heart and muscles strong.
The heart is a muscle and needs testosterone, but this is inhibited by statin drugs. Some patients on statin drugs have developed cardiomyopathy, a weak heart that is not able to work sufficiently for the needs of the body. Another possible side-effect of statin drugs is rhabdomyolysis, which is extreme muscle cell inflammation with rupture of the cell wall.
Your heart and the muscles need testosterone for proper functioning. Testosterone is needed to lower cholesterol as well as balance blood glucose levels by maintaining muscle mass. The more muscle and less fat a person has, the better insulin receptor site binding, which helps prevent Type II diabetes. The more stable the glucose levels, the lower the triglycerides will be and this keeps cholesterol levels down. The proper level of testosterone is needed for hair growth. Your body works as a whole. Just because a drug suppresses a symptom, it does not mean the condition is healed.
You can manage your cholesterol levels naturally, increase your hormones naturally, and both of these will do your hair good.
References:
Long term benefits of testosterone replacement therapy on angina threshold and atheroma in men study by Mathur, Malkin, Saeed, Muthusamy, Jones and Channer.
Harvey et al., Biochemistry: 3rd Edition, Baltimore: Lippincott, 2005, pp. 235-238.
“Reduction of protein synthesis and statin-induced cardiomyocyte cell death.” Rabkin SW, Lodha P, Kong JY. Cardiovasc Toxicol. 2007;7(1):1-9.
