Report: 25 Percent of Americans Over 45 Take Statins

Photo Courtesy - Getty Images(ATLANTA) -- Numbers from the Centers for Disease Control suggest that a staggering number of American adults over 45 years of age -- one out of every four -- takes cholesterol-lowering statins.

The figures, from the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics annual report, represent a tenfold increase from the years between 1988 and 1994, when just two percent of adults over 45 took statins, compared to 25 percent from 2005 to 2008.

Another startling statistic is the amount of men 65 to 74 years old who take the drugs. According to the report, over half of men in that age bracket take statins, which can help prevent cardiovascular diseases.

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