If you take statin drugs to lower that cholesterol level, you may have some protection from heart attacks up to ten years later after you cease taking those drugs, according to new research.

Pravacol, a stain drug commonly used in Europe and elsewhere to regulate cholesterol levels in at-risk patients, was found to 'substantially' lower heart attack risk and heart-related death. The study's participants included middle-aged men who had never had a heart attack but had a very high level of LDL (bad) cholesterol.

While this is good news, there definitely needs to be more insight into the benefits of statin drugs in order to offset the problems that have been reported by this class of drugs.

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There are about a billion different weight-loss programs out there, so how do you narrow it down and pick the one that works for you? The experts over at Yahoo health have made it easier for you -- they've compiled this list of diets you should avoid at all costs. What made the list? well ....

1. Diets that promise rapid weight-loss in a short amount of time -- if it works out to more than two pounds a week, you might be putting your health at risk
2. Diets that use pills, supplements, creams, etc. and promise results without exercise or diet changes -- Repeat after me. There. is. no. magic. pill. It takes hard work and anyone who tells you differently is lying.
   
3. Diets that are really different from how you eat now -- You'll have trouble sticking to it if it's too far from your comfort zone
   
4. Diets that have you eating less than 1,000 calories a day -- You'll be weak, tired and cranky. It's not worth it.
5. Diets that claim to be easy and effortless -- see #2
6. Diets that cut out whole food groups -- you won't stick to it, especially long-term.

What do you think -- did they miss anything?

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It's said time and time again: Fad dieting is a no-no. And yet someone must be buying into the fads because their still around and their makers are raking in the cash. So in case you're still not convinced, Fitsugar has put together a list of the 5 most dangerous things about fad diets:

• Lack of a balanced diet, or cutting out food groups all together, will lead to nutritional deficiencies
• The lack of variety causes boredom, and based on my experiences with friends on fad diets, extreme moodiness -- yikes!
• The emphasis is on the diet -- it doesn't account for how important exercise is'
• Severely restricting food intake can make it harder to maintain healthy eating habits afterwards.
  
• Many are based on unsubstantiated claims that can prove to be useless or even harmful.
  

What's more, long-term weight-loss requires a full lifestyle change, and that's not likely to come from following the cabbage soup diet for a few weeks. It's better to make small, healthy changes in your everyday life -- changes that you can live with in the long-run.

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Losing weight is one thing, but keeping it off is quite another -- maybe you've learned this the hard way already. Keeping your weight down long-term requires a complete lifestyle overhaul -- and a little advice. Here are the top ten things you should do to make long-term weight loss a reality, from eDiets:

• Plan ahead -- Weight loss requires planning, and so does maintenance.
  
• Learn how to grocery shop healthfully
• Realize that weight loss is hard work -- there's no easy solution, except keeping it off in the first place!
• Find the motivation tool that works for you
• Self-monitor your actions and be accountable for them
  
• Trouble shoot when necessary
• Ask for support from friends and family
• Workout like you mean it
• Read the food labels -- always!
• Eat breakfast

Want to know more? Check out the full article.

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