Thanks for this! I agree that there needs to be a re-examination in the medical community of what cholesterol means and how it is treated. I went through a lot of cholesterol monitoring this last year and am left with a big question mark. Basically I went to see a doctor about one thing, and unrelated to that, my cholesterol #s came back high. So she recommends extreme dietary changes and statins. And I tell her that 1) I'm breastfeeding, and the low-fat diet she is recommending is not what my child, who is underweight, needs -- in fact, the pediatric health visitors (I have no idea what their qualifications are) were telling me to eat MORE fat; and 2) both of my parents experienced severe muscle atrophy as a side effect of taking statins, and I was loathe to expose myself to that risk. She continued to push, and finally I asked her what effects these drugs would have if they were passed to my child through breast milk. Then she stopped pushing, but referred me to a specialist. Said specialist said it's normal for your cholesterol to be high while breastfeeding, so we really should wait until after weaning to be sure. Oh, and said specialist totally respected my desire to not take statins. This was a 6-8 month process and they still never properly diagnosed the issue I initially went in for.
2014 Bobbin Bramble / Brooks B67
2008 Rodriguez Rainier Mirage / Terry Butterfly Tri Gel
2007 Dahon Speed Pro TT / Biologic Velvet
1998? GT Rebound / Serfas Gel