It’s not uncommon for Australians to be taking one or more prescription medications.

What many people don’t realise is that prescription medications, while delivering numerous health benefits, can have the ability to deplete us of various nutrients in our body. Does this mean we should stop taking prescription medications? Definitely not- it is always best to follow the advice of your healthcare practitioner and take medications that have been prescribed with your health needs in mind.

How do prescription medications cause nutrient deficiencies?

Some prescription medications bind to nutrients in the gastrointestinal tract, before these nutrients can be absorbed into our bloodstream.

What this means is that we are not necessarily receiving the nutrients we need from our food, and can begin to develop deficiencies that leave us feeling tired and out of sorts.

Particular medications can also inhibit particular enzymes in our body that help us to process the essential nutrients in our food and regulate our cholesterol levels, which can have damaging effects on our health.

Common prescriptions and Ubiquinol deficiency

Beta Blockers are a traditional, effective prescription for reducing hypertension (high blood pressure). They can, however, deplete the levels of Ubiquinol, the active form of CoQ10 in our body[i].

This is also the case for statins, the name given to the class of prescription medications that is used to reduce the amounts of LDL (aka ‘bad’) cholesterol in the body.

Why is this an issue?

Research has shown that depleted levels of CoQ10 can both impact heart health[ii] and contribute to muscle stiffness and pain. Muscle pain and stiffness in patients taking statin medication is referred to as statin-myopathy.

The good news is that by supplementing with Ubiquinol, the active form of CoQ10, you may be able to reduce the symptoms of muscle pain by more than 50%[iii], and may also improve your heart strength.

If you’re concerned that you could be suffering from a nutrient deficiency as a result of your prescription medication, speak to your healthcare professional.

References:
[i] Kishi T, Watanabe T, Folkers K. Bioenergetics in clinical medicine XV: Inhibition of coenzyme Q10-enzymes by clinically used adrenergic blockers of beta-receptors. Res Commun Chem Pathol Pharmacol 1977;17:157-164,

[ii] JACC Heart Fail. 2014 Sep 25. pii: S2213-1779(14)00336-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jchf.2014.06.008. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25282031

[iii] Zlatohlavek, L. et al. 2012, The effect of coenzyme Q10 in statin myopathy, Neuroendocrinol Lett, 33(Suppl.2):98-101