It’s the cure-all that doesn’t really “cure” a thing — but that hasn’t stopped the mainstream from throwing cholesterol-lowering statin drugs at absolutely everything anyway.

The latest: A new push to give these meds not to people who suffer from high cholesterol (who don’t need the drugs, either), but to people suffering from the flu.

No, it’s not April 1st and I didn’t just make that up: Researchers now claim that statins can not only beat the flu, but actually stop people from dying of the illness.

In this case, an observational study of flu patients who were hospitalized for the condition found that people on statins were 41 percent less likely to die than people not on the meds.

Just one problem — one huge problem: This wasn’t a clinical trial. No one was randomly assigned to statins or a placebo. In fact, there were no placebos at all. It was simply a hindsight look at flu patients and their outcomes as well as whatever meds they happened to be taking at the time.

The researchers claim they waved their magic statistical wand over the study and adjusted for everything from age and race to chronic conditions and diseases to get a picture of the patients’ overall health, and still found a benefit for statins.

But since it wasn’t a real clinical trial, it’s impossible to adjust for everything — and it’s quite likely that patients who were already on statins were patients who were already under the active care of a doctor.

These people are more likely to take the actions they think will help keep them healthy (even if it’s the wrong action, like swallowing statins every day) and more likely to seek help quicker when they do get sick.

The patients not on statins, on the other hand, might include people who tend to avoid doctors and medical care — at least, in this case, until they were so sick with the flu they were hospitalized for it.

Here’s the reality of the situation: Statins are wrong for cholesterol… and they’re certainly wrong for all the other conditions they’re being touted for (I’ve seen claims they can help with everything from dementia to cancer, no kidding).

And they’re especially wrong for flu: Some of these meds even have respiratory infections and influenza listed as possible side effects!

You couldn’t come up with a worse flu treatment if you tried.

Statins for kids? The very idea is insane, yet millions of children are already taking these “adult” meds — and a new set of guidelines aims to give these drugs to millions more, including kids still in elementary school.

The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute says every child between the ages of 9 and 11 should be screened for cholesterol, even if they’re in perfect health and have no family history of high cholesterol or heart problems.

Forget that there’s no evidence high cholesterol is even harmful to a child. And don’t even think about the fact that supposedly high LDL levels in kids usually normalize on their own over time.

Nope, none of that matters any more. All that matters now are the numbers on the blood test. And if your kid’s number comes up, he needs to be “treated.”

That’s code for those cholesterol meds, especially the statins that make up some of the best-selling drugs in the world despite side effects such as debilitating muscle pain, kidney and liver damage, cataracts and even a higher risk of diabetes.

If there’s one group of doctors out there who should be standing in the way of this, it’s the doctors who supposedly know children best — like the members of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

But that organization actually helped to create the new guidelines — and, in fact, last year called for giving statins to kids as young as 8 years old. (Read about that here.)

This failure to protect our children from over-medication is not a surprising one. Just last month, this very same group called for giving ADHD meds to children barely out of diapers. (Read the full story here.)

You might say they can’t keep their hands away from their prescription pads — because even without these new guidelines, they’ve been busily passing out adult meds to children for years now.

In 2009 alone, pediatricians wrote nearly 3 million prescriptions for cholesterol meds for kids, including 2.3 million statin prescriptions. So many kids are on these meds that Pfizer even created a chewable Lipitor just for children — and it’s already been approved in Europe.

Thanks to the new guidelines, you can bet we’ll be seeing it here at some point, too.

Statins aren’t the only adult drugs aimed at kids. Millions of children are already hooked on painkillers, antidepressants, BP meds, diabetes drugs and more.

But all of these conditions, up to and including high cholesterol, can be treated and defeated without a single med.

Now, you just have to find a doctor who still knows how to do it.

You don’t need to hunt wooly mammoths to be a “caveman” these days. In fact, you don’t even need a cave.

The “caveman” diet is more about what you eat than where you live — and if you can stick to a 100-percent natural lifestyle of fresh meats and vegetables with no processed foods, congratulations.

You’re officially a caveman.

It’s hard to find anything wrong with this diet, and science now confirms what should have been obvious all along: Eating only fresh foods can help put you in the best shape of your life and slash your risk of illness and disease.

Researchers at the University of California San Francisco asked a group of unhealthy people to stick to a “caveman” diet high in healthy fats and proteins from meats, fish, and nuts as well as generous amounts of fresh fruits and veggies.

After just two weeks, everyone’s blood pressure and cholesterol levels plunged — with triglycerides alone falling by an average of 30 points.

“That’s the kind of drop you get by taking statins for six months,” Dr. Linda Frasettom, who led the research, told Medical News Today.

I’d almost agree — except statins come with a risk of severe muscle pain, liver problems and kidney damage. A diet of fresh natural foods will do none of those things to you.

Statins can even increase your risk of diabetes — but a diet with no added sugars and zero processed foods will practically guarantee that you’ll never get the disease.

Dr. Robert Lustig, an endocrinologist at the university, says diabetics who’ve tried this back-to-basics approach have seen a reversal of the condition — and some have actually been cured.

That’s right. The “c” word — and while most of the media is of course only too happy to trash the diet and even mock the people who follow it, one reporter got an up-close and highly personal look at just how well it works.

Dr. Kim Mulvihill of the CBS station in San Francisco had been battling a weight problem and pre-diabetes when she volunteered for the UCSF study. In just 10 days, she saw dramatic changes to her cholesterol, blood pressure and blood sugar levels as well as a boost in energy.

She eventually lost 30 pounds, and after seven weeks was no longer considered a pre-diabetic — causing her own doctors to tell her to stick to the diet permanently.

If you’re facing your own battle with disease — or simply want to avoid ever having to worry about one — maybe it’s time to go caveman yourself.

You make a lot of sacrifices when you become a parent — but this is one I’m sure most men never see coming…

It’s the loss of their manhood.

No, I’m not just talking about the fact that one-time tough guys will coo at a baby, or decorate a nursery in pink.

I’m talking about real research that reveals a sharp dip in testosterone levels from the moment they hear the words, “It’s a boy!”

Fatherhood can literally cause testosterone levels to plummet by as much as half the moment a child is born. And while it recovers after that (a little bit, anyway), they never quite get their pre-parental mojo back.

Researchers measured testosterone levels by taking saliva samples from 600 childless men in the Philippines, then repeated those tests for five years. The men who had kids during that time saw their levels plunge by 50 percent in the first month of fatherhood.

Those who were most involved in physically caring for their child had the biggest drops. (If you ever needed an excuse to skip diaper-change, this is it!)

Testosterone levels eventually recovered when the children reached toddlerhood — but not completely. Men with kids had 34 percent less testosterone by the end of the study, while men without had drops of just 14 percent (we all lose a little as we age).

But you don’t have to tolerate low testosterone levels, whether you’re a dad or not. There are simple steps you can take right now to keep your hormone levels exactly where they need to be.

First, be sure to get your rest. Testosterone levels can fall by 15 percent after just one week of sleepless nights, according to a recent study.

Next, lose some weight: Studies have found that overweight and obese men have lower levels of the hormone — and that those levels rise when the weight comes off.

Finally, find a safe way to get off the drugs you don’t need (and that’s nearly all of them). Many come with side effects that are downright emasculating. One recent study found that men who take statins, for example, have double the risk of low testosterone.

If none of these apply to you, and you’re suffering from low testosterone, here’s one for you: Emerging research has found that an extract of the spice fenugreek can actually cause free testosterone levels to surge by as much as 96 percent. Read more about it here.

That’s enough to turn you into the manliest dad — or even granddad — around.