Statin Drugs May Lower CoQ10 Levels

Statin drugs, or HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors, are a class of drugs used to lower cholesterol.

Statins work by inhibiting the enzyme HMG-CoA reductase, the enzyme that determines the rate of cholesterol formation.

Some research suggests that statin drugs may interfere with the body's production of Co q10, a substance produced naturally in the body and found in every cell. Co q10 has a key role in the mitochondria, the part of a cell that produces energy.

Statins have been found to decrease Co q10 production as a side effect of their action.

• A Columbia University study in New York found that 30 days of statin therapy (80 mg/day) decreased Co q10 levels by half.
  
  
• Another study by researchers at Kanazawa University in Japan found that smaller doses of statin drugs can reduce Co q10. After 8 weeks of 10 mg a day statin therapy, Co q10 levels decreased by 40 percent.

Some researchers suggest that this side effect may counteract any benefits of taking statins.

For example, in an article published in the journal Biofactors, cardiologist and researcher Dr. Peter Langsjoen says, "The depletion of the essential nutrient Co q10 by the increasingly popular cholesterol lowering drugs, HMG CoA reductase inhibitors (statins), has grown from a level of concern to one of alarm."

"With ever higher statin potencies and dosages and with a steadily shrinking target LDL cholesterol, the prevalence and severity of Co q10 deficiency is increasingly noticeable."

However, research on whether Co q10 supplements are beneficial in people taking statins is still inconclusive. Co q10 is not routinely recommended in combination with statin therapy.

People particularly vulnerable to statin induced Co q10 deficiency are:

• over 50 years of age
  
• have a history of diabetes
  
• have or are at risk for heart failure or cardiomyopathy
  

Co q10 supplements are usually orange colored tablets or capsules, found in drug stores and health food stores. It is one of the more expensive nutritional supplements. In Japan, Co q10 is one of the top three best-selling nutritional supplements.

More: Co q10 fact sheet.

Sources

Langsjoen PH, Langsjoen AM. The clinical use of HMG CoA-reductase inhibitors and the associated depletion of coenzyme Q10. A review of animal and human publications. Biofactors. 2003;18(1-4):101-11.

Mabuchi H, Higashikata T, Kawashiri M, Katsuda S, Mizuno M, Nohara A, Inazu A, Koizumi J, Kobayashi J. Reduction of serum ubiquinol-10 and ubiquinone-10 levels by atorvastatin in hypercholesterolemic patients. Journal of Atheroscler Thromb. 2005;12(2):111-9.

Rosenfeldt F, Hilton D, Pepe S, Krum H. Systematic review of effect of coenzyme Q10 in physical exercise, hypertension, and heart failure. Biofactors. 2003;18(1-4):91-100.

Silver MA, Langsjoen PH, Szabo S, Patil H, Zelinger A. Effect of atorvastatin on left ventricular function and ability of coenzyme q10 to reverse that dysfunction. American Journal of Cardiology. 2004;94(10):1306-10.

Weant KA, Smith KM. The role of coenzyme Q10 in heart failure. Ann Pharmacother. 2005;39(9):1522-6.