Should you stop taking a statin because low LDL cholesterol might cause Parkinson's disease? You may be concerned if you read about a study from researchers in North Carolina showing that lower blood levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol increase the likelihood of having Parkinson's disease.
The study compared LDL cholesterol levels in 124 people with Parkinson's disease who attended a movement disorders clinic, with levels in 112 spouses of the people coming to the clinic. They found a higher incidence of Parkinson's disease in those with lower total and LDL cholesterol levels.
For example, compared with people whose LDL cholesterol was greater than 138 mg/dL, the likelihood of having Parkinson's disease was doubled in those with an LDL cholesterol between 115 and 137 mg/dL or below 92 mg/dL, and more than tripled if their LDL cholesterol was between 93 and 114 mg/dL.
Does this mean you are more likely to develop Parkinson's disease if you have been advised to lower your LDL cholesterol to around 70 mg/dL because you have cardiovascular disease or diabetes? Absolutely not.
For one reason, this small study showed an association of low LDL cholesterol with Parkinson's disease, but this in no way proves that low LDL cholesterol is a cause of Parkinson's disease. This point is worth emphasizing because stories in the media frequently cite potentially worrisome research showing that some factor, like brushing hair too vigorously, is linked to colon cancer, for example.
Although such studies may raise interesting avenues for further research, they certainly do not indicate that you'll get colon cancer if you brush too hard or too often. You may laugh at such an association but believe me that equally unlikely associations take up space in medical journals.
There's an even stronger reason not to worry that lowering LDL cholesterol will raise your risk of Parkinson's disease. The same study mentioned above found that taking a statin or other cholesterol-lowering medication was associated with a significantly reduced likelihood of having Parkinson's disease. Go figure.
