Elderly should take cholesterol-lowering statins, says study

New guidelines recommend statins not only for people with cardiovascular disease, diabetes, or high levels of bad cholesterol, but also for adults who are at risk of such diseases. - Shutterstock

Nearly everyone aged 66 to 75 should consider taking cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins to reduce their risk of heart attack and stroke, new guidelines says.

A total of 97% of people in the age group, and 100 percent of men, should be on the medication even if their cholesterol levels are normal, according to a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine, a journal of the American Medical Association.