A mid-2008 recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics regarding cholesterol-lowering drugs proposed placing children, some as young as 8, on statin drugs to harness high cholesterol.
A study about eight months later from the American Heart Association asserted only about 0.8 percent of children would actually benefit from treatment with cholesterol-lowering drugs, according to MSNBC.
As MSNBC reports, that relatively low percentage helps quell concerns that “many” children should be candidates for the drugs.
Children are increasingly overmedicated, and lifestyle and diet change should always be the first option to control cholesterol, especially in young people. Doctors should have renewed confidence in natural interventions, such as diet, exercise and nutrition, as opposed to drugs as the first line of defense against heart disease.
