Drug Claims

Question 1

What are statins?

Answer 1

Statins are prescribed drugs used to lower the risk of heart and circulatory disease

Question 2

Describe the evidence on the effect of statins. How was the research conducted? (3 main points)

Answer 2

1) There’s evidence that statins lower blood cholesterol and significantly lower the risk of heart disease in diabetic patients
2) The original research was done by government scientists with no connection to the manufactures. The sample was big - 6000 patients
3) It compared 2 groups of patients - those who had taken statins and those who hadn’t. Other studies have backed up these findings

Question 3

Describe cannabis. What are the results of tests done on cannabis smoke?

Answer 3

Cannabis is an illegal drug. Scientists have investigated whether the chemicals in cannabis smoke cause mental health problems
The results vary and are sometimes open to different interpretations
No one’s sure until more evidence is found