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In a newly-released draft recommendation this week, America's leading group of experts in preventive medicine rolled out fresh guidelines on the candidates who will benefit the most from taking statin drugs to lower cholesterol levels and prevent the likelihood of heart attack and stroke.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force now strongly recommends statins even to 40-year old adults with low risk of having cardiovascular diseases.

According to Yahoo News, the draft guidelines stated that adults 40 to 75 years of age with existing 10% risk factor or higher in heart-related conditions in the next decade will reap the maximum benefits of taking statins as a preventive measure.

"Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death, and people with no signs or symptoms or past history of cardiovascular disease can still be at risk. Our review indicates that some of these people can take a statin to prevent heart attacks and strokes," told task force member and Stanford University professor Dr. Douglas Owens as quoted saying by WebMD.

The guidelines also suggests people who are uncertain of the risk they have may still get preventive benefits from statin provided that they consult closely with their doctors.

Despite repeated attempts by health authorities to advise the public on the benefits of taking statins preemptively, a million likely candidates aren't taking the preventive medication.

"Bad lipids do not make one feel badly until the heart attack, heart failure, or stroke occurs," remarked Dr. Chip Lavie of Cardiac Rehabilitation and Prevention at John Ochsner Heart and Vascular Institute in New Orleans as mentioned by CBS News.