Statin drugs block the creation of cholesterol in the liver. One unfortunate side effect is that they also dramatically decrease the production of Coenzyme Q10 (also called CoQ10 or Ubidecarenone).

A Columbia University Study found that 30 days of statin treatment (80 mg/day) cut the CoQ10 production in half.

A second study in Kanazawa University in Japan, found that even smaller amounts (10mg/day) cut CoQ10 by 40% over 8 weeks of treatment.

why is CoQ10 is so important?
Of the cells in your body, your heart cells use the most energy. In each of these cells, there are little energy “generators” called Mitochondria. The fuel for these generators is called ATP or Adenosine Triphosphate. ATP can’t be made without CoQ10.

Now, the good thing is that your body naturally produces CoQ10. If your body doesn’t produce enough of it, you can get a small amount of extra CoQ10 by eating foods that are rich in it like animal heart, or liver. The reality is, that there’s no way that you can get the necessary quantity of CoQ10 by just eating foods. Frankly, you probably wouldn’t enjoy eating that much heart and liver even if you could.

There are a variety of CoQ10 supplements out there, they aren’t all created equal. That’s a discussion for another day. In the meanwhile, this is the CoQ10 suppliment that I’m recommending to patients that come into my store.