Cholesterol lowering drugs, known a statins, can lower coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) levels in the blood. Research that was published in Pharmacological Research (2015 Sep;99:329-36. doi: 10.1016/j.phrs.2015.07.008. Epub 2015 Jul 17) was a meta-analysis of eight other random controlled studies to get a sense of how severe the reduction of CoQ10 levels is for patients taking statins. Authors of the study found the reduction to be significant.
This is important because low CoQ10 levels are linked to heart failure. The heart contains high levels of coenzyme Q10 and these levels are found to be lower in people suffering from congestive heart failure. According to an article appearing in The Lancet (1998;352(Suppl. 1):39-41) notes that the incidence of heart failure has dramatically increased in the last three or four decades. The prevalence of heart failure has increased by 70% between 1990 and 2000. This corresponds with the increase in the use of statins.
