Quick answer

Ask your pharmacist or doctor before combining. NIH says that in one study of 153 people, vitamin C taken with other antioxidants blunted the rise in HDL cholesterol from simvastatin taken with niacin. It is not known whether this happens with other statins, and NIH says providers should monitor lipid levels in people taking both.^1,2,3

Key facts

NIH's health professional sheet says vitamin C, in combination with other antioxidants, may attenuate the increase in HDL cholesterol that results from taking niacin and simvastatin together.¹
NIH says it is not known whether the same happens with other lipid-altering regimens, and that providers should monitor lipid levels in people taking both statins and antioxidant supplements.^1,2
The trial behind this gave 153 people with coronary artery disease and low HDL cholesterol vitamins E and C, beta-carotene and selenium, with or without simvastatin and niacin, for 12 months.³
The four groups were simvastatin plus niacin, antioxidants, both together, and placebo, so a statin without niacin was not tested alongside antioxidants.³
The atorvastatin and simvastatin labels read for this page do not name vitamin C, and both ask patients to tell their healthcare provider about the vitamins and supplements they take.^4,5

Your doctor may want to check on you

In one study, vitamin C taken with other antioxidants such as vitamin E, selenium and beta-carotene blunted the rise in HDL cholesterol from simvastatin taken with niacin. It is not known whether this happens with other cholesterol medicines, and NIH says doctors should check cholesterol levels in people taking both.^1,2

Reported in studies

What does NIH say about vitamin C and statins?

NIH's health professional sheet on vitamin C lists statins among the medicines vitamin C supplements may interact with, next to chemotherapy and radiation. The wording is narrow: vitamin C, in combination with other antioxidants, may attenuate the rise in HDL cholesterol that results from taking niacin and simvastatin together. The consumer sheet describes the same study and says providers should monitor lipid levels in people taking both statins and antioxidant supplements.^1,2

That makes this a studies entry, not a label warning. The statin labels read for this page, including those for atorvastatin and simvastatin, ask patients to tell their healthcare provider about all the medicines they take, including vitamins and herbal supplements, but they do not name vitamin C.^4,5

What did the study actually test?

The finding comes from a randomized trial reported in 2001. In 153 people with coronary artery disease and low HDL cholesterol, over 12 months, researchers compared simvastatin plus niacin, a mix of antioxidants (vitamins E and C, beta-carotene and selenium), all of them together, and placebo. Total HDL cholesterol rose 25% with simvastatin and niacin alone but 18% when the antioxidants were added, and the HDL2 part rose 42% against 0%.³

A three-year trial in 160 people from the same research group, with the same four treatment groups, found the HDL2 rise with simvastatin plus niacin was also attenuated by the antioxidant vitamins. Its authors wrote that the use of antioxidant vitamins in that setting must be questioned. Both trials were read as abstracts for this page.⁶

Does this apply to other statins or to vitamin C on its own?

NIH says it is not known whether this happens with other lipid-altering regimens. The trial had no group taking a statin alone with antioxidants and no group taking vitamin C alone with a statin, so the sources read do not show what vitamin C by itself does to a statin. That is not a finding either way, so ask your pharmacist.^1,3

General statin cautions still apply. MedlinePlus asks people taking atorvastatin to tell their doctor and pharmacist about the vitamins and nutritional supplements they take, and lists muscle pain, tenderness or weakness among the symptoms to report right away. Those cautions are not specific to vitamin C.⁷

Which products might carry the same antioxidant mix?

In 1999 to 2000, about 35% of US adults took a multivitamin, which usually contains vitamin C, and 12% took a separate vitamin C supplement.¹

Because many people take a multivitamin, it is worth reading its label against the study's mix. Check whether it also lists vitamin E, beta-carotene or selenium, the other ingredients in the study's antioxidant combination. The abstracts read for this page do not give the amounts used, and the sources checked do not say how much of any antioxidant matters.^1,3

What to ask your pharmacist about vitamin C and your statin

Which statin do I take, and is it simvastatin, the one in the study?
Do I also take niacin, on its own or in a combination product?
Do my multivitamin or other products add vitamin E, selenium or beta-carotene?
Who will check my cholesterol after I start a vitamin C product, and when?

NIH says providers should monitor lipid levels in people who take both, so a blood test result may be part of the answer. MedlinePlus tells people to keep taking atorvastatin even when they feel well and not to stop without talking to their doctor.^2,7

Questions people ask

Can you take vitamin C and statins together?

Ask your pharmacist or doctor first. NIH describes one study in which vitamin C with other antioxidants blunted the HDL rise from simvastatin plus niacin, and says providers should monitor lipid levels in people taking both.¹

Does vitamin C affect statins?

Only one effect is described in the sources read: in a study of simvastatin plus niacin, antioxidants including vitamin C blunted the HDL increase. NIH says it is not known whether this happens with other statins.^1,3

Can you take vitamins with statins?

MedlinePlus asks people taking atorvastatin to tell their doctor and pharmacist about all the vitamins and supplements they take. The sources checked name vitamin C and the antioxidant mix in the study, and do not address other vitamins one by one, which is not a finding either way.^1,7

Is there a vitamin C and statins interaction on the label?

It is not on the labels read. The atorvastatin and simvastatin labels do not name vitamin C. The concern comes from a study that NIH summarizes, so it is an entry based on studies.^1,4,5

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Sources

This page is information, not medical advice. Talk to your doctor or pharmacist about your own situation.