A new study in the Annals of Internal Medicine by Dr. Mark Pletcher of the University of California, San Francisco challenges the notion that young adults don’t need to pay attention to their cholesterol. After following 3,200 young adults between the ages of 18 to 30-years-old for 20 years, Dr. Pletcher and his colleagues found that those with high levels of low density lipoprotein (LDL) in their youth were at an increased risk of heart disease and stroke later in life.
“This research is extremely important since doctors should already be checking the blood pressure and cholesterol levels of young adult patients, and this study should be a wake-up call for those physicians who aren’t,” says Dr. Ross. “Most young people in this country are not so concerned about their health, therefore, it should be up to physicians to routinely check these parameters in order to protect their patients from the future development of coronary heart disease.”
According to Dr. Pletcher, young adults should not, however, necessarily resort to medication to lower their cholesterol. “Diet and exercise may be more important than cholesterol-lowering medication in young adults.”
But Dr. Ross reminds us that dietary measures often do little to affect cholesterol levels. “Dr. Pletcher should think more outside the box. If doctors follow these ineffective guidelines, they better follow-up with patients in a few months and suggest statin drugs for lipid problems, because I predict most patients will not improve with his old-fashioned approach.”
The hesitancy that physicians may have toward prescribing young adults cholesterol-lowering medication disappoints Stier. “Doctors should be encouraged to stick to science, not their own bias. It’s not cautious when you discourage physicians from helping patients lower their cholesterol with medication.”