The American Heart Association does not recommend taking vitamin C or other antioxidant supplements to lower cholesterol or prevent cardiovascular disease. Although a few small studies found heart-friendly benefits from taking antioxidants, larger clinical trials do not support their use, according to the AHA. It recommends following an antioxidant-rich diet instead. If you combine vitamin C supplements with statins, they may reduce the effectiveness of the cholesterol-lowering drug.
Meeting Vitamin C Allowances
You probably get all the vitamin C you need from your diet. Good sources include citrus fruit, broccoli, baked potatoes, cantaloupe, tomatoes and red and green pepper. A healthy diet includes 75 mg to 120 mg of vitamin C. You may need to take vitamin C supplements -- or eat more vitamin-C rich foods -- if you suffer from a malapbsorption disease or if you smoke or are routinely exposed to secondhand smoke. Otherwise, limit your vitamin C to dietary sources. If you take statins, do not include grapefruit as a source of vitamin C. Grapefruit makes it harder for you to metabolize statins -- and other drugs -- and makes you more susceptible to serious side effects.
Study
Doctors sometimes prescribe statins along with niacin. Statins prove the most effective drug in lowering low-density lipoprotein -- LDL or "bad" cholesterol -- but don't work as well to boost levels of protective high-density lipoprotein -- HDL or "good" cholesterol. If you take both statins and niacin, adding vitamin C supplements to the mix might reduce the drugs' benefit, according to a study led by Greg Brown, professor of medicine at University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle. In the yearlong study, participants who took antioxidants including vitamin C, E, beta-carotene and selenium realized less improvement in their HDL levels than participants who did not take vitamin C or other antioxidants. Participants who took antioxidants without taking statins saw no improvement in their cholesterol scores, according to the report published in the "New England Journal of Medicine" in November 2001.
Side Effects
Vitamin C supplements, unlike dietary supplements such as red yeast rice, will not increase your risk of side effects from taking statins. Statins, generally well-tolerated, may cause muscle aches. In rare cases, taking statins may cause a potentially fatal condition called rhabdomyolysis, severe breakdown of muscle tissue that can trigger kidney failure. If you take statins, get your liver checked periodically for possible damage. If you experience muscle pain, report this symptom to your doctor. If you don't limit your intake of vitamin C, side effects include stomach cramps, nausea and diarrhea. If you have hemochromatosis, a condition that causes your body to store too much iron, vitamin C could worsen your condition.
Considerations
To avoid side effects and interactions with statins, limit vitamin C to dietary sources unless your doctor advises you to take supplements. Safe remedies for lowering cholesterol -- with or without taking statins -- include diet and lifestyle changes. A heart-friendly diet limits saturated fat to 16 g to 22 g, trans fat to 2 g, dietary cholesterol to 200 mg to 300 mg and foods and beverages with added sugar to 100 to 300 calories a day, based on a 2,000-calorie-a-day diet. Shed excess pounds, exercise regularly, limit alcohol consumption and, if you smoke, quit.
References
- "Circulation"; AHA Science Advisory Antioxidant Vitamin Supplements and Cardiovascular Disease: Penny M. Kris-Etherton, et al.; May 200
- Office of Dietary Supplements, National Institutes of Health: Vitamin C
- "The New York Times"; Experts Reveal...Grapefruit Juice; Nicholas Bakalar; March 21, 2006
- The Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide: Grapefruit and Medication; February 2006
- University of Maryland Medical Center; Drug Treatments: Statins
- "New England Journal of Medicine"; Simvastatin and Niacin, Antioxidant Vitamins, or the Combination For the Prevention of Coronary Disease; B.G. Brown, et al.; November 2001
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