CHOLESTEROL-lowering drugs taken by thousands of Britons can directly increase the risk of diabetes because of the way they function, research has shown.
Statins have previously been associated with higher rates of type 2 diabetes, but it was not clear whether the drugs were responsible or some other coincidental factor.
Now a study involving experts from Glasgow University has produced strong evidence that the drugs' basic mechanism can lead to weight gain and a modest increase in diabetes risk.
However, experts said the benefits of taking statins still greatly outweigh the risks and advice on taking the drugs should not be changed.
Scientists analysed genetic data from up to 220,000 people and results from almost 130,000 patients who took part in earlier statin trials. They found patients taking statins experienced a modest 12 per cent increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes over a four-year period, and gained around half a pound in weight on average.
Statins work by reducing the efficiency of a liver enzyme, causing liver cells to trap more low-density lipoprotein (LDL) - the harmful form of cholesterol - from the bloodstream.
The cholesterol is converted to bile salts and eliminated naturally from the body.
Lead researcher Dr Daniel Swerdlow, from University College London's Institute of Cardiovascular Science, said: "Commonly occurring variants in the gene encoding the same liver enzyme are associated with a lower LDL cholesterol.
"Incorporating information from up to 220,000 individuals, we found that these genetic variants were also associated with a higher weight and marginally higher type 2 diabetes risk.
"The effects were very much smaller than from statin treatment, but the genetic findings indicate that the weight gain and diabetes risk observed in the analysis from trials are related to the known mechanism of action of statins rather than some other unintended effect."
The findings are published in the latest online edition of The Lancet medical journal. Co-senior author Professor Naveed Sattar, of the University of Glasgow Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences, said: "Previous analyses have indicated that the cardiovascular benefits of statin treatment greatly outweigh the risk of new-onset type 2 diabetes.
"Nevertheless, many patients eligible for statin treatment would also benefit from lifestyle changes including increased physical activity, eating more healthily and stopping smoking."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article