• Pravastatin, with the brand name Pravachol, has been found to impair memory
  • Atorvastatin, with the brand name Lipitor, does not, say Bristol researchers
  • The adverse effects of pravastatin on memory can be reversed by stopping the medication

By Fiona Macrae

PUBLISHED: 12:14 EST, 25 September 2013 | UPDATED: 19:33 EST, 25 September 2013

Some commonly prescribed statins can impair memory, scientists have found

Some commonly prescribed statins can impair memory, scientists have found


Statins taken by millions of Britons could lead to  memory loss, researchers have warned.

In tests, one of the widely- prescribed drugs cut the ability to form new memories and recall information.

The medication, called pravastatin, was found to have an adverse effect on rats.

Bristol University researchers say their study tallies with reports of statin patients feeling 'fuzzy-headed' and 'befuddled'.

The team also said it was 'highly likely' other statins affected memory loss.

But other experts dismissed the research and insisted the benefits of statins outweigh any side-effects.

Statins, which lower levels of 'bad' cholesterol in the blood, are the most widely prescribed drugs in Britain and are taken by up to eight million people.

Used to treat those at risk of heart problems and strokes, they are credited with saving thousands of lives a year and some doctors believe that everyone over the age of 50 should be given them.

However, a range of documented side-effects includes muscle and liver problems, blurred vision, fatigue and difficulty sleeping, leading some  doctors to argue they should be reserved only for those at risk of heart problems.

The Bristol neuroscientists looked at the effect of two of the most commonly prescribed statins – pravastatin and atorvastatin – on the memory of rats.

Rodents given pravastatin found it more difficult to learn where a sugary treat was hidden, they discovered.

They also struggled to recall an object they had seen before.

This behaviour was likened by researchers to someone knowing that they have car keys, but not being able to remember where they left them.

It is thought statins may be reducing levels of cholesterol in the brain or affecting its nerve cells directly. 

A quarter of the body's cholesterol is found inside the head, where it aids the transmission of signals between brain cells.

The problems vanished shortly after the animals were taken off pravastatin. Atorvastatin did not affect memory, according to a report in the journal PLoS ONE.

It is unclear why pravastatin affected memory, as the drug is not thought to be able to cross into the brain and atorvastatin is.

Pravastatin (pictured), with the brand name Pravachol, has adverse effects on working and recognition memory. However, atorvastatin, with the brand name Lipitor, does not have any effect

Pravastatin (pictured), with the brand name Pravachol, has adverse effects on working and recognition memory. However, atorvastatin, with the brand name Lipitor, does not have any effect

The Bristol researchers said patients on statins should take note of the findings and warned that it is 'highly likely' other statins may also affect memory.

Professor Neil Marrion said: 'If you notice you are suffering cognitive problems or people around you  recognise you are suffering problems, go back to your GP and ask for a different statin and you might find the problem disappears.'

Others have described the advice as 'total overkill'.

Consultant cardiologist Kausik Ray, a member of the British Cardiovascular Society, said large-scale studies on frail and elderly people had failed to find any evidence that statins damage memory.

'I don't do rat research, I do large-scale population research,' he said.

'There is a reason that people are on statins – and that is to reduce the risk of heart disease and strokes.'

The drugs watchdog, the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory products Agency (MHRA), said memory loss is already listed as a potential side-effect of statins.

A spokesman added: 'The benefits of statins are well established and outweigh the risk of side-effects in most patients who take them. We are aware of this study and, as with all medicines, the safety of statins continues to be monitored closely.'

The comments below have not been moderated.

People are being experimented on for a long time. We should walk away from all this fear mongering.

'large-scale studies on frail and elderly people had failed to find any evidence that statins damage memory'? Well, I'm not frail and elderly: I'm a 58 year old academic. I was put onto this product 4 years ago and stopped it after 3 months because I felt sluggish mentally and physically. As in some cases above, my doctor scolded me and suggested I was imagining things. I refuse to go back on any statins but am regularly advised to by my new GP despite my bad cholestorol levels being only slightly raised, and having actually decreased over the past 5 years. I expect people to think through the advice I give them as a professional: I do the same with advice from others. We are thinking beings, not robots.

I have been on statins for some time now and have experienced minor memory loss. To combat this I have been taking Co Enzyme Q10 (non presription) and I does have some effect to improving memory.

I have been on Lipitor for years. I have no memory loss. No other side effects. My cholesterol is way down. I'm enjoying the best of health, as I approach 80 years.. Listen to your doctor not these inane DM commentators.

Old news that statins are bad news

AS one specialist in the Far East said to my wife last year: Unfortunately, because of cost, the NHS is using old hat medication! HE reduced my wife's medication from 12 tablets in the morning and 6 at night, to: 6 in the morning and 1/2 of one at night. When my wife saw the specialist on returning to the UK, they INSISTED on putting her back on the original medication, which was killing her. Suffice to say: WE insisted they gave her the medication from the Far East as she was in better HEALTH all round from it! AT the end of the day it came down to COST, NOT health.

From experience of Statins and other medications at the same time. The pain was unbearable, as well as the MEMORY LOSS. I could not remember the names OR faces of friends I had known for 20 years, as well as MY WIFE!. As the Doc said: It is a one off! One off to MANY! Sorry, from on going experience, the side effects of the medication can be FAR worse than the medical problem I have at present!

i've been on simvastatin for a year & a half now and i am beginning to notice some memory loss!

The NHS could save a 1billion a year if they stopped handing out this poison like smarties. Stopping taking Simvastatin was the best thing I ever did. Anxiety and depression has gone but unfortunately I now have to have testosterone injections to repair the damage the cost of which costs the NHS millions more.

So much conflicting research on statins and other drugs. GP's and cardiologist played down the muscle problems I had when taking them but two orthopaedic consultants and a urologist agreed on the dangers. My GP told me that one local cardiologist would even like statins in the water supply:-)

There's no knowing what is in the tap water we are expected to drink. We bought a water distiller and only use tap water for baths and washing vegetables. EVERYTHING is cooked in distilled water...only way to clear everything out of it.

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