Poor Muscle Tone & Cholesterol

High blood cholesterol and triglycerides, a chronic condition that occurs when you have too many fatty substances in your blood, is related to poor muscle tone in several ways. People taking statin medications for high cholesterol may experience poor muscle tone as a side effect. An underactive thyroid gland can also cause high cholesterol in conjunction with poor muscle tone, as can a sedentary lifestyle. Fortunately, several treatments including medications, nutritional supplements and lifestyle changes may help people with high cholesterol and poor muscle tone.

Statins

Statins are medications that lower blood lipids and are commonly prescribed to people with high low density lipoprotein, or LDL, cholesterol. Some statins used to treat high LDL cholesterol include lovastatin, pravastatin, simvastatin, fluvastatin, torvastatin and rosuvastatin. While these drugs may help lower LDL cholesterol and thereby reduce cardiovascular disease risk, they are also associated with muscle-related side effects, including muscle pain, weakness, and even muscle damage leading to poor muscle tone. Risk of muscle-related side effects with statin therapy increases with higher statin potency.

Hypothyroidism

High blood cholesterol and decreased muscle tone are both symptoms of hypothyroidism, a disease characterized by an underactive thyroid gland. Other symptoms of hypothyroidism include fatigue, weakness, depression and unexplained weight gain. This disease occurs in both children and adults. Without treatment, mental and physical symptoms can become more severe. If you have high cholesterol and any other of these symptoms, you should see a doctor to determine whether hypothyroidism is to blame.

Lack of Exercise

Lack of exercise may also cause both high LDL cholesterol and poor muscle tone, especially as you age. A sedentary lifestyle can also cause obesity, which is a risk factor for unhealthy cholesterol levels. Regular exercise helps raise levels of high density lipoprotein, or HDL, cholesterol, also called "good" cholesterol, while also improving muscle tone. Strength training exercises such as sit-ups and push-ups are especially effective in toning the muscles, which in turn helps control weight and cholesterol levels.

Solutions

In addition to regular exercise, certain medications, supplements and lifestyle changes may help reduce control cholesterol and improve poor muscle tone. A study published in "Annals of Internal Medicine" found that lifestyle changes and nutritional supplements containing red yeast rice were both helpful in controlling high LDL cholesterol in people who experienced muscle-related side effects from statins. While you shouldn't discontinue statin therapy without consulting your doctor, you may want to discuss these alternative treatment options if you have poor muscle tone caused by statin use. Lifestyle changes for high LDL cholesterol include weight loss and eating heart-healthy foods like salmon and whole grains. For people with hypothyroidism, hormone therapy can restore normal metabolic functioning and thereby treat hypothyroidism symptoms including poor muscle tone and high LDL cholesterol.

Considerations

Although certain conditions and medications affect both muscle tone and blood cholesterol, poor muscle tone and elevated cholesterol levels may occur independently from each other. Very poor muscle tone, called hypotonia, may indicate a disorder of the brain, spinal cord, nerves or muscles, such as muscular dystrophy or poisoning from exposure to toxins. If a person has poor muscle tone to the point that he has problems controlling his muscles, a doctor should perform diagnostic tests to determine the cause.