OK, you medical types (and I mean folks who are actually up to speed on controlled studies). I have a question.

We know that high cholesterol levels, and particularly the low-density lipoproteins, are correlated with increased risk of heart disease and stroke. The theory, as I understand it, is that these are the cause of plaque which results in coronary problems.

Many people are now being prescribed drugs (usually statins) that reduce cholesterol production and measured levels. Now, I know that these have been proven to be effective in cholesterol reduction, but have they been actually shown, in clinical studies, to actually reduce risk of heart attack and stroke? In other words, because of our faith in the cholesterol-coronary link, are we treating a symptom, rather than a cause?