Source: BBC News
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence published draft guidance in February calling for their use to be extended to save more lives.
It could mean another five million people in England and Wales using them on top of seven million who already do.
But in a letter to NICE and ministers, the experts expressed concern about the medicalisation of healthy people.
The letter said the draft advice was overly reliant on industry-sponsored trials, which “grossly underestimate adverse effects”.
And it added: “The benefits in a low-risk population do not justify putting approximately five million more people on drugs that will then have to be taken lifelong.”
The drugs reduce levels of cholesterol in the blood, lowering the risk of a heart attack or stroke.
The signatories include Royal College of Physicians president Sir Richard Thompson and former Royal College of GPs chairwoman Clare Gerada as well as cardiologists and leading academics.