Feed the word "statins" to Google and the three suggestions that roll up are "statins side effects", "statins and diabetes" and "statins and memory loss". The search engine's negative take on the drug designed to tame your cholesterol levels is mirrored by controversy about statins in the medical community.
Commenting on whether statins pose a risk, Jonny Bowden, a nutritionist and co-author of The Great Cholesterol Myth, comments: "That's precisely the problem - we don't really know."
Statins in general are safe for many people, according to Bowden, who critiques the drugs in his book. "But they are also riddled with side effects, such as muscle pain, memory loss, loss of libido and loss of energy," he says, adding that, in some studies, some statin-treated groups experience a troubling spike in diabetes.
There are many conflicting studies, however. In a study published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes in July last year, researchers reviewed data from 135 previous drug studies published between 1985 and early 2013.
The tests involving nearly 250,000 patients evaluated the safety of the seven statins on the market.
They concluded "as a class, adverse events associated with statin therapy are not common". They also noted a nine per cent increased risk of diabetes among statin users.