Depression-Lipitor: What You Need to Know

Depression-Lipitor: Defining Statin

Lipitor is one of the new breed cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins which have grown in popularity during the past five years. An enzyme in the liver produces cholesterol regularly. However, Lipitor or atorvastatin reduces the effectiveness of the enzyme thus spurring the liver to take cholesterol from the bloodstream instead.

Total cholesterol present in the blood is then diminished by 30% to 45%. The bad cholesterol or low-density lipoproteins (LDL) are reduced by 40% to 60%, triglycerides or sugar levels are reduced by 20% to 37% while good cholesterol or high-density lipoproteins (HDL) are increased by 5% to 10%. Depression and Lipitor are sometimes viewed together due to the known psychological effects of the drug.

What Lipitor Users Should Know

Lipitor should be incorporated with a healthy low-fat diet and regular exercise to maximize its effects. Users should not expect to lose fat or weight by using the drug independently. Take not that Lipitor is not a weight loss drug and should not be taken without the prescription of a doctor or for fad dieting.

The medication mainly acts to reduce the risks of developing heart and blood vessel ailments. Taking high amounts of atorvastatin can be dangerous and will not hasten or increase its efficacy. Lowered holesterol levels to prevent heart attacks and strokes will take about 2 to 4 weeks.

Depression and Lipitor

Depression can result if Lipitor is taken carelessly. Normal side effects of the drug are abdominal upsets like constipation, indigestion, gas-forming and flatulence. Mental effects can be drowsiness, nausea, anxiety and blues. If these psychological symptoms worsen, depression can develop.

Patients with liver problems or with known hypersensitivity to Lipitor will only experience adverse effects since the drug cannot be absorbed properly. Certain drugs may also reduce the benefits provided by atorvastatin. Patients should not take more than the prescribe amounts with the intention to notice results to avoid depression caused by overdose or drug dependence.

Understanding the Pathway

The cholesterol-making process of the liver uses the mevalonate pathway or HMG-CoA reductase pathway to support a variety of functions in the body. Membrane protection and repair, protein anchoring and hormone production and regulation are just some of these. Lipitor acts on this pathway to control how the liver produces cholesterol. It is only important that the right amounts or dosage is taken to safely regulate the process.

The Pathway and Depression

If the pathway is extremely disrupted due to high amounts of Lipitor, the functions supported by it will also change specifically hormone production and regulation. SSRIs and MAOIs in the brain responsible for mood will adversely be affected by wrong usage of the drug thereby causing emotional upsets, anxiety, and worry. In the later stages, Lipitor causes depression.

Discuss with your doctor about any concerns with the depression-Lipitor subject. He would usually recommend patients to take a 10-mg tablet once a day then gradually increase the dosage up to 80 mg. Almost all patients are told not to take more than 100 mg a day to avoid complications. Physicians will also check for present and underlying conditions before prescribing the drug.